From the Heart
by ArtsyChick
Summary: New girl, new adventures, new magical creatures. Two years after his adventures in the Kingdom of Cats, Baron meets another girl with a magical problem.
1. Story of My Life

**A/N: **Oh my gosh, I just discovered the most awesome thing today! InYuJi, an artist on deviantart, drew fanart for this story! I've never had that happen before, and I am so honored! If you'd like to check it out, go to my profile and click on the link to her profile. In her gallery, click the folder for The Cat Returns and look for the pages labeled "From the Heart" (her pages contain spoilers, so view at your own risk... but I hope you do view them because they're awesome!).

Gosh, I'm so excited! Anyway, on with the story; I hope you like it!

* * *

Kokoro chewed the end of her pencil as she stared at the test she was supposed to be taking. She really regretted not studying and choosing instead to watch a movie that was on TV. She only knew the answers to a few questions, and that was strictly from her memories of note taking.

The bell rang, signifying the lunch hour had started, and she had to hand in her unfinished test. _Oh well,_ she thought dejectedly. _I don't think I failed _too _badly._

As she collected her things, Kokoro gazed out the window. It was such a clear, beautiful day outside. She wished she could be out there in the sunshine instead of stuck inside a drab school building listening to lectures and taking dull tests.

Her best friend since third grade, Ami Tanaka, came up behind her and flicked the back of her head. "Come _on_ Kokoro, I'm _hungry_," she whined, flopping into the seat in front of her.

Kokoro was snapped out of her daze and hurriedly shoved her things in her book bag. "Sorry, sorry," she mumbled, tripping over her chair as she got out of her seat.

As they walked down the hallway, Ami going on about her latest boyfriend, Kokoro let her mind wander again. She wondered what she was having for dinner, and when her dad would get home. She also wondered when she would have time to go to the public library and pay off her fines so she could check out books again. Then, she wondered when…

Suddenly, Kokoro felt her chest bump into something, and she was snapped back to reality. She had to tilt her head back to see the person's face that she'd bumped into.

"Excuse me," the young man said before he sidestepped Kokoro and continued down the hall.

She and Ami turned and watched the boy walk until he linked arms with a girl, and then Kokoro looked away. Her racing heart slowed to a pounding beat and sank in her chest.

Ami watched her friend's eyes. "I still don't understand what you see in Tora Shibuki Kokoro," she said.

"He's just so darn cute!" Kokoro exclaimed, pumping her fist. "And he's a grade ahead of us, which makes him even cooler!" Then she sighed. "But he'd never go out with me."

"Come on Kokoro, you're cute too!" Ami said. "Tora doesn't know what he's missing by not going out with you."

Kokoro smiled. "Thanks Ami."

Ami smiled back. "Anytime. That's what friends are for, right?"

The two girls reached a staircase and started climbing the steps. "Oh, by the way, I can't hang out after school today," Kokoro said, sighing.

"Why? What's up?"

She groaned. "Environment Club. We're going to go clean a river today."

Ami crinkled up her nose. "I can't believe you joined that club just because Tora did. You don't even care about the environment, do you?" she asked accusingly.

"It's not that bad. It'd be better if you came with me…" Kokoro looked pleadingly at her friend.

Ami shook her head. "No thanks. I just got my nails done yesterday, and sticking them in a dirty river is _so_ not good for them."

She sighed again. "Oh, right. Sorry I asked."

Ami suddenly brightened. "Have I told you that Seiji's on the soccer team?" she asked cheerfully, turning to her.

Kokoro laughed, amazed at how short Ami's attention was and trying not to feel too bummed out about Tora. "Not yet. But that's what lunch is for, right?"


	2. The Stone

The final bell rang. Kokoro took as long as she could putting her books in her bag. She was not looking forward to cleaning up a river, even if it did mean getting to see Tora outside of school.

Kokoro finally trudged to the club's meeting room. It was actually just an old chemistry lab, but the good thing was that it had lots of windows, and she would spend the meeting staring out of one.

She was running late, to no one's surprise, and the president of the club, Takashi Kogane, sent her to the girl's locker to change into the spare clothes they were supposed to bring that day.

When everyone had returned to the room, Takashi said they were going to board a bus that the school provided and ride to the river. After the river was clean, they would all ride back, change into their uniforms, and call it a day.

_Eww, _Kokoro thought bitterly.

Everyone quickly boarded the bus, and Kokoro found a seat in the back and sat next to the window. While she was waiting for the bus to leave, someone sat beside her. She turned her head and started to tell the person that the seat was taken, but the words stuck in her throat.

Tora turned his head and smiled at Kokoro. "Hi," he said.

Kokoro nodded, and forced herself to answer. "H-h-hi."

"Haven't seen you around here much. Did you just join?"

_I joined the same time as you, stupid, _Kokoro thought angrily, but her cheeks betrayed her. Her blush was rivaling the color of a tomato as she replied, "N-no, I've been in the club since the beginning of the year."

Tora chuckled nervously. "Oh, uh, that's the same time I joined. Sorry."

He then turned away from her and began talking to someone else, ignoring her. The rest of the ride was incredibly dreary, Kokoro's mind plagued by the conversation with Tora. She still couldn't believe that after all the time she spent at the club, it was turning out to be a complete waste. Finally they arrived. Everyone trooped off and stood in a group around Takashi.

"Okay everyone, Hitomi will hand out trash bags and then we can all get to work!" Takashi said, clapping his hands. "Let's get to cleaning up this river!"

Kokoro was handed a huge black trash bag and then she tromped over to the water's edge. Slipping off her shoes and socks, she pulled on a pair of raggedy sandals and poked her bare toes into the water. She squeaked and jerked her foot out, her face turning red. _I'm being such a baby,_ she thought embarrassedly. Squeezing her eyes shut, she cautiously stuck one foot into the cold water. Digging her nails into her palms, she stuck the other foot in and waded out toward a plastic bag caught on a stick.

Three hours later, the group was still hard at work. Kokoro grudgingly pulled a rusty cola can from between some rocks and shoved it into her bag. Her hands were grimy, her feet were sore, she was sweaty and tired, and she smelled like a dirty river. But at least her feet had gotten used to the icy water. _Yeah, that's because I can't feel them anymore_.

Deciding to take a break, she stepped out of the river and plopped down on the sandy shore. She wiped the sweat off her forehead and lifted her brown hair off her shoulders. Then she sighed. "This is _really_ too much work," she grumbled.

As she sat on the shore, she saw a sparkle in the water. Glancing down, she saw something glitter in the fading sunlight, so she plunged her hand into the cool water and fished around. When her fingers brushed against a rock, she closed her hand and pulled it out of the water, then opened her palm. Inside was green stone, worn smooth by the river. She dried it on the hem of her shirt and held it up to the sun.

The rock was a deep green color, like an emerald, and just as sparkly. Flecks of gold twinkled inside the stone, and Kokoro smiled. It certainly was a very pretty stone.

"Hey, c'mon Kokoro, get back to work!" Takashi yelled, startling her out of her daydream. She shoved the stone in her pocket and stood up, traipsed back out into the water, and continued slaving away, hoping that her torture would soon be over.

~*~


	3. Tiny People and a Strange Place

Finally, after six long and painful hours, the river was crystal clear and running smoothly. They all climbed onboard the bus again, but this time she sat beside a girl named Miwa.

"Boy, that was a lot of work," Miwa said. "But totally worth it. Don't you agree Kokoro?"

"Oh, yeah, sure." She turned her head to gaze out the window.

Miwa shook her head. "You're always so spacey, Kokoro," she said. "I don't get how you do so well in school."

Kokoro shrugged. "Habit, I guess."

When they got back to the school, she changed out of her clothes and rushed out of the building, refusing the rides she was offered. Even though she was sore, she'd much rather walk than trouble someone else for a ride. _Besides, I can't give directions, _she thought, frowning.

Instead of following the road, she decided to take a shortcut through a grove of trees. The sun-dappled trees were much prettier to look at than a busy, noisy road, and this way she could lose herself in their silence and get home and shower that much faster.

As she strolled along the grassy path, Kokoro watched the fading light coming in through the tree branches speckle her arms and legs with dark spots. "Kinda like a Dalmatian," she murmured.

Suddenly, she saw a twinkle of light. She stopped and turned her head, but she didn't see anything. Shrugging, she started to walk again. But then, out of the corner of her eye she saw it again, only this time it seemed closer.

Kokoro stopped again and turned completely around, but she still didn't see anything. "My eyes must be playing tricks on me," she mumbled. Believing that, she was about to start walking again when she felt something tug on her hair.

She turned around and saw a tiny person with glittery, gossamer wings pulling her hair. The person looked angry as she kept pulling on the lock of her hair she was holding. Kokoro screamed and started to back up, but she tripped on a stick and fell to the ground, her face pale.

"Give it back!" the little person cried in a shrill voice. "Give it back!"

"G-g-give what back? I-I don't know what you're talking about!" Kokoro stammered, scooting backward until her back collided into a tree.

More of the tiny people suddenly appeared and began pulling on her hair, her clothes, and her bag, all shouting, 'Give it back! Give it back!'

Kokoro screamed again as she clumsily got to her feet and began to sprint. "Get away from me, you crazy things!" she yelled, swinging her hair and sending some of the little people flying.

The tiny people fluttered behind her as she ran away, and no matter what she did, she couldn't seem to lose them. She saw that she was headed back into the city, further away from her house, and she hoped that once she got around other people, the things would go away.

But apparently normal people couldn't see them, only a filthy girl running down the sidewalk and occasionally swatting at her hair and her skirt.

Kokoro ducked into an alley, but it was a dead-end. Turning, she spied a stack of crates leading up to a low roof. Quickly she scrambled up them and took off across the tin roof, not bothering to look back. She could still hear squeaky voices yelling at her.

_Thank you for making me run marathons all these years Dad, _she thought breathlessly, sliding between two rails on a staircase leading off the roof. Racing down the staircase, she passed the side of a house and turned down another narrow alley. The voices seemed to be getting louder, so Kokoro closed her eyes and pushed herself as hard as she could.

As suddenly as they appeared, the voices vanished, and Kokoro stumbled forward and collapsed to her knees. Then she groaned.

"Ow," she moaned, letting her sweaty head fall forward until her chin bumped against her chest. Once she'd caught her breath, she tucked her hair behind her ear and glanced at the ground.

Instead of cement or asphalt, Kokoro was kneeling on, what appeared to be, tiny cobblestones. Looking up, she saw she was not anywhere she recognized; it seemed like a different world entirely.

Little houses, painted bright colors and the appropriate size for dolls, lined a circular town center. In the middle was a tall pole with a stone crow perched on top.

Slowly, Kokoro turned around, her mouth open. The place was beautiful! It was like a picture on a postcard Ami had sent her when her family went to Europe three years ago.

As she turned, she saw the sun slowly sinking between the tiny shingled roofs. Golden light reflected off the opposite windows and the angle they were at directed the light to a central area. Her eyes followed the light, and she saw that it was directed at one of the little houses.

The house was smaller than the ones around it, painted a cheerful green and white with little white balcony encircling the second-story window. On either side of the house were baskets of red and yellow tulips, and next to those were a little red mailbox and a wicker chair.

Kokoro tiptoed over to get a better look, and saw eyes staring back. Stepping closer, she realized the eyes belonged to a cat figurine. It was wearing a white top hat with a long dress coat, red vest, and blue bowtie. In one of his hands was a cane, and the other was pulled behind his back.

She tilted her head and looked into the cat's face as the lights got even brighter. Glittering jade eyes stared back into her own emeralds, and when the cat's flickered for just a second, she gasped and stepped back.

The sun disappeared behind the houses, and all the light faded away. Kokoro backed away from the house, more in shock than fear, until her back bumped into the stone pole. She grabbed it for support and looked up at the sky. That's when she saw that the stone crow once perched on top of the pole had disappeared.

"What happened to the crow?" she murmured.

~*~


	4. The Problem at Hand

As soon as Kokoro spoke, a crow gently landed on top of the pole. It preened its feathers a little before turning toward her. "My my, what a pretty young girl," the crow said.

Kokoro squeaked and fell backward, landing hard on her bottom. "T-t-that crow just s-s-spoke to me…" she stuttered.

The crow cocked its head and stared at her. "I see. You must be new to this." It hopped off the pole and fluttered to the ground, landing at her feet. "Miss, you have come to a place that is a refuge for objects with a soul."

"Huh…?"

"When someone creates something with all of their heart, that something is given a soul. Everything here was given a soul by the person who created them."

"Oh…" Kokoro was starting to get used to the crow speaking, which worried her deeply. "So, are you the stone crow on top of the pole?"

"Yes. My name is Toto." The crow smiled. "How do you do, Miss?"

"Uh, well…"

Suddenly, a loud, gruff voice interrupted her answer. "Who's the kid Birdbrain? How'd she get in here?"

Kokoro and Toto turned to look at a fat, white cat that had just entered the tiny town the same way Kokoro had. The cat was unusually large, with a very wide girth, and its left ear completely brown. But the reason Kokoro paled was because, not only had the cat been the one that had talked, it was walking towards them on its hind feet.

Toto scowled at the cat. "You have no manners at all, Fatso," he replied bitterly.

The cat growled and raised his paws, waving them threateningly at the bird. "Who're you callin' Fatso?"

The crow rose off his perch and swooped down, barely missing the cat's smallish head. "I called you Fatso, you fat marshmallow!"

"Shut up you dumb chicken!"

"You're so stupid you can't even tell the difference between a chicken and a crow!" Toto swooped again, this time his claws scratching against the cat's ears.

"Try that again, Birdbrain!" So Toto did it again, and the cat hissed in anger.

Kokoro watched in frightened awe as the two talking animals bickered like little children. She was still desperately trying to sort her confused thoughts.

"You _really_ want to know why she's here, ask her yourself, idiot!" Toto said as he landed again on his pole and smoothed out his feathers.

The cat stuck his tongue out at Toto before stalking toward her. "How'd you get in here?" he snarled at her.

To say she was intimidated was an understatement; Kokoro was terrified of the cat. "Uh, I-I don't know."

"You don't know? You don't _know_? What are you, stupid?" The cat crossed his arms at her, and Kokoro frowned.

"Now, Muta, leave our poor guest alone. I'm sure she's had a very trying day." Everyone turned toward the voice and not for the first time that day, Kokoro's jaw fell open. Strolling toward the group was the cat figurine she had seen in the window of the little green house, right before the sun had plunged below the roofs of the tiny houses. For a cat he was quite handsome, and very gentlemanly. He _was_ defending her, after all.

Kokoro gazed at the cat as he stopped in front of them and removed his hat. He held it against his chest and tucked his other arm behind his back. "I am Baron Humbert von Gikkingen, owner of the Cat Bureau. Pleased to make your acquaintance, my good lady." He bowed before her, and Kokoro felt her cheeks grow hot.

"Wow, you're cool," she said, amazed.

The Baron replaced the hat on his head and smiled. "Thank you. Now, I assume that you have a problem."

Kokoro snapped herself out of stupor. "Uh, y-yes! Yes, I do have a problem, I think."

He smiled again. "Then you have come to the right place Miss… ah, I don't believe I know your name."

"Oh!" She couldn't believe she'd forgotten to introduce herself, after the Baron had been so polite. "I-It's Kokoro."

"Ah, Miss Kokoro." He lifted his hand to his chin in thought. "Hmmm. I believe that name suits you to a T." Kokoro felt her cheeks heat up again. "Please, come inside, and we can discuss your problem over a cup of tea."

"Oh, sure, that'd be great!"

"Wonderful. Follow me then." The Baron headed back towards his green house. "You two may join us as well," he said, addressing Toto and the other cat.

"Thank you Baron," Toto replied happily, but the cat, whom Kokoro assumed was 'Muta', simply grunted.

The Baron threw open his double doors and entered. Kokoro stepped aside and let Muta enter first. Toto hopped up onto the balcony and entered the house from there. Then, she knelt down and furrowed her brow. It was going to be a tight squeeze, but, as it turned out, she was small enough to scoot inside without too much trouble.

"Sit wherever you like," the Baron said, hanging his coat, hat, and cane on an old-fashioned hat stand.

"Oh, okay Baron," she replied. "Uh, may I call you 'Baron'?" she asked as she sat down on a large, green trunk next to the door.

"Of course," he answered, picking up a teakettle. "Most do."

Kokoro smiled as she looked around the room. It was quite spacious, actually. There was a cabinet with a shelf on one wall, and next to it was a small table with a basket of apples and lemons and several jars on it, and on the bottom of the table was a rack full of bottles. Beside that was a tall blue-and-white cabinet, like a pantry. There were lots of plants and clocks scattered around the room, brightening the already cheery room. On the back wall was a desk with a lamp, a feather pen and inkpot, and a towering stack of books. Actually, the entire back wall was lined with shelf upon shelf of books. She wondered what was in all those books and why a cat would need or want so many books, but she did approve. She loved to read books too.

"It's so cute," she murmured. "Just like the doll house I had when I was little."

"What do you take with your tea?" Baron asked, pouring the steaming tea into a teacup. "I have milk, lemon, honey…"

"Oh, milk please!" she chirped happily. Even though most of her day had been lousy, just being in Baron's little green-and-white house with all the books was cheering her up.

"Here you are," Baron said, handing her a teacup.

Kokoro gratefully accepted it. "Thank you."

He nodded, then turned to the cat on the couch. "How about you Muta?" he asked, holding the kettle.

Muta crinkled his nose. "Nah, your tea tastes like boiled grass to me."

"Anything with class is wasted on your unrefined taste buds," Toto remarked. Muta glared at him.

Kokoro tentatively sipped her tea. The warm liquid gushed down her throat, warming her entire body. "It tastes like ginger," she murmured. "Baron, this is the best tea I've ever tasted."

Baron looked pleased as he poured himself some tea. "Then you're lucky," he replied. "That is my own special blend of tea, so it changes every time. I can never guarantee the flavor."

"Then I must've gotten ten bad kettles," Muta complained.

Baron ignored him as he walked over to his desk. Kokoro guessed he must have gotten used to Muta's complaining and the cat and crow's bickering, judging by the way he disregarded them so easily.

"So, Miss Kokoro, tell me about your problem," Baron said, lacing his fingers.

Kokoro drank the rest of her tea and set the cup in her lap. "Well, after school, I went with a bunch of other kids to go clean a river. I was taking a break when I looked down and in the water was a very shiny rock, so I picked it up and put it in my pocket. After a couple more hours, we went back to the school, I changed, and then I took a shortcut home through a grove of trees. While I was walking, I saw a flash of light—"

"You're seeing things? Baron, this girl's obviously nuts," Muta growled, folding his arms.

"Now Muta, let her speak," Baron admonished. "Please, continue Miss Kokoro. You said you saw a flash of light."

She still wasn't quite comfortable when the handsome cat defended her. "Uh, well, I saw a flash of light and I turned around but there was nothing there. So I started to walk again, and then I saw the light again, but I still couldn't see anything, and just when I was about to start walking again, something pulled my hair. I looked, and there was this… tiny person with butterfly wings pulling my hair."

"A tiny person?" Baron asked, the curiosity obvious in his voice.

"Yeah! She was pulling on my hair and yelling 'Give it back, give it back'. I screamed and fell, and then more of them came. They were all screaming at me and pulling my hair and on my clothes, so I took off running. I thought they'd go away when I entered the city, but they didn't, so I ran down a bunch of allies, and across a roof, and then I was here. And the little people and their screaming had disappeared."

"I see." Baron took a sip of his tea, and then he looked up at her again. "Do you still have that stone with you? The one you found in the river?"

"Oh, yeah. Why?"

"May I please see it?"

"Sure!" Kokoro turned and reached into her pocket, pulled out the stone, and handed it to him.

Baron took the stone in his hands and held it up to the light. Muta and Toto were both leaning forward, trying to get a better look at the stone. Even Kokoro leaned forward, though she already knew what it looked like.

The cat carefully set it down on his desk and tapped it with his pen. Black ink drizzled out of the nib and onto the rock, but it all slid right off, staining the wood of his desk. He placed his chin in his hand and rapped the stone with his knuckles. He then turned around and grabbed several books off the shelf behind him. He flipped through them, but the longer he turned the pages, the more furrowed his brow became. "Hmm, that's interesting," he murmured.

"What?" Kokoro asked, curious.

"Did you see?" Baron lifted his pen and dripped ink on the rock again. Like the first time, all the ink slid off. "The ink slides right off, but we are able to hold it," he said, replacing his pen. "It's not transparent, but when I tap it, it sounds hollow." To prove his point, he tapped the rock with his knuckles again, and the resulting sound was hollow. "And there is no rock like this in any of my books, nor have I ever seen one like this. This is very interesting indeed."

Baron picked up the stone, walked over and handed it back to her. "Well Miss Kokoro, I have developed a theory. I think you were being chased by fairies, and this stone you found must belong to them."

Muta and Toto looked skeptical. "Fairies, Baron?" Muta said, unconvinced. "That's the best you can come up with? I think you're losing your touch."

"I hate to agree with the fatso, but Baron… fairies?" Toto asked.

Baron however looked unfazed at his friends' doubt. "Well, she described them as tiny people with butterfly wings." He then turned to look at Kokoro again. "Did they say anything to you, besides 'Give it back'?"

"Um, well…" Kokoro racked her brain. Had they said anything else? Maybe… "Um, yeah, I think they did, right before they disappeared."

Baron looked very interested as walked back over and took out his pen and a sheet of paper. "Do you remember what they said?" he inquired eagerly.

Muta shook his head. "You're readin' too much into this Baron," he said, standing up, walking over to Baron's cabinets and opening them.

Kokoro tapped her chin and tried to remember. "Okay, um, I think they said 'Ji… uun… seru mi… oro kei… tatsun… shi ko… keikei… alune.'" She sighed. "I don't know what any of that means though."

But Baron looked excited. "Muta, will you get that light green book down from the top shelf for me?" he asked as Muta bit into an apple. Muta did as he was asked and handed the book to Baron, who began flipping through it and scribbling things down on the paper.

Finally, he held it up, but his excitement had faded. "Assuming that you didn't leave anything out, and adding in a few small words so it make sense, I believe they said: 'If you do not return the stone by sunset, we will find you and take you to our queen, and she will decide your fate.'"

"So it was a threat," Toto said, nodding grimly.

Kokoro couldn't help it: she began to cry. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she sobbed. "I-I-I don't wanna go to the queen!" she wailed. "I-I-I just f-f-found a rock in a r-r-river. I-I-I didn't m-m-mean to do anything wrong!"

Suddenly, she saw a square of white in front of her nose. Baron was holding a white handkerchief in front of her, looking very apologetic. "Please don't cry Miss Kokoro," he said, reaching out and dabbing at her tear-stained cheeks. "I promise that I will do everything in my power to help you. Please don't cry."

Kokoro took the handkerchief and wiped her eyes. Her throat started to loosen, and her sobs faded away as her newfound friends looked on, clearly concerned.

When Baron was satisfied, he turned around and walked back over to his desk. "Well, now that that is all settled, I think it's time we do a bit of research."

~*~


	5. Research

"Research?" Kokoro blotted at her eyes as she looked to Baron for an answer.

"Yes, research," he said, seating himself at his desk again. "When coming up with the best strategy, you must know your enemy's strengths and weaknesses. Since we all know next to nothing about the fairies and their queen, we can't help you very well, now can we?"

"But how are we going to learn about fairies?" Toto questioned, looking down at Baron.

Baron smiled. "I was thinking on paying another visit to the Kingdom of Cats."

"What?!" Muta roared, jumping off the couch and turning to glare at Baron. "Oh no, you aren't dragging me to that place again!"

Baron rubbed his chin. "I wasn't planning on inviting you Muta." Muta looked shocked, then offended. "Actually, I was going to ask you to stay here and watch Miss Kokoro while I'm gone."

Muta folded his arms over his chest and scowled. "I'm no baby-sitter. I'm not watching some loony girl while you run off."

"Baron, do you really want to leave that fat fleabag in charge of another life?" Toto asked, staring pointedly at the fuming Muta.

"At least I don't have a birdbrain!" he hissed.

"Now, now, you two, you're upsetting our guest," Baron said, looking at Kokoro. Both animals looked at her and cringed.

Kokoro looked surprised, then touched her cheeks. They were startlingly wet. She hadn't realized she was crying again.

Muta slumped his shoulders. "All right, all right, I'll be the babysitter," he said, defeated. "But you owe me Baron!"

Baron clapped his hands together. "Wonderful! Toto, I'm going to need you to come with me."

"What for Baron?"

The cat walked over and removed his hat, coat, and cane from the hat stand. "King Lune gave me a device so I can enter the Cat Kingdom anytime I wish, but I'll need a ride back. The tower still isn't rebuilt from when their previous king destroyed it," he said.

During their entire conversation, Kokoro sat on her trunk and looked utterly confused. _What on earth are they talking about? _she wondered. "What's the Cat Kingdom?" she finally asked, embarrassed that she couldn't be included in their conversation.

"It's another dimension inside this one that is ruled and lived in exclusively by cats," Baron explained as he pulled on his coat. "I believe the current rulers are King Lune and Queen Yuki."

"And I thought a fairy kingdom was weird," she murmured.

Baron adjusted the hat on his head before spinning around, strolling back over to his desk, and opening a drawer. He withdrew a gold fish with a purple crystal eye strung on a chain, which he carefully looped around the handle of his cane. Then he disappeared outside.

The other three looked at each other before Toto hopped out the balcony doors and Muta rushed through the main ones, Kokoro following behind. When they all got outside, Baron was standing twenty feet from his house and mumbling something. He then tapped his cane three times on the cobbled street and took several steps back. As they all watched, a giant hole opened in the middle of the road, the energy emanating from the hole causing Kokoro's hair to dance around her face.

Baron turned around and gestured to Toto to come forward. The crow hopped forward, and Baron swung up onto the bird's back. He then turned and waved to Kokoro. "I'll be back soon, and then we can deal with your problem properly," he said. "You can stay the night here, so as those fairies don't come and steal you away while we're gone."

Kokoro smiled. He really was a gentleman. "Thanks Baron," she said gratefully.

"Oh, and Miss Kokoro?" She looked at him. "Keep that stone with you at all times. If we lose it, and those fairies find you, you could be in danger."

He then turned to the grumpy cat. "Muta, please help her get comfortable. Oh, there is an angel food cake I just made this morning in the cupboard. Share it with her."

Finally, he looked back at the hole. "All right, I'll be back as soon as I can!" he yelled, then Toto jumped into the hole, and in a burst of vibrant blue light, they were gone.

~*~


	6. Kidnapped!

Kokoro thoughtfully sucked on her fork as she sat inside Baron's warm house and listened to Muta gobble up the rest of the angel food cake.

She wondered if her father noticed she was gone. Maybe, if he was home from work and had noticed there was no dinner on the table. At least the next day was Saturday, so she could lie and say she spent the night at Ami's house and forgot to call. Ami would vouch for her, if she asked her to.

Muta told her she couldn't sleep in the house because she was way too big. But he went and rounded up enough mattresses and blankets from all the other houses to make a bed large enough for her to lay on comfortably.

"Thanks Muta," she said as she laid down on the makeshift bed.

Muta grunted. "Don't complain about it," he said gruffly. "And as soon as Baron comes back, I'm outta here."

He turned around and shuffled back into the house. Kokoro thought he had left, but he came back out with a basket of apples and a newspaper. The large cat sat down in the wicker chair beside the door, the basket next to him, and opened the paper.

Satisfied that she wasn't alone, Kokoro turned away from him and sighed happily. "I think I can get used to this," she whispered sleepily, pulling one of her blankets up to her chin and closing her eyes.

~*~

Kokoro sat up with a jolt. She glanced around and remembered that she was sleeping on the cobblestone street in front of Baron's cheery green-and-white house, and that earlier that day angry fairies had chased her around town. Muta was asleep in the chair, the newspaper across his chest and a basket of apple cores next to him. He was snoring loudly, and Kokoro couldn't help but compare it to the time she had accidentally sucked up her dad's slipper with the vacuum cleaner.

Slowly she stretched her arms, and pushed the blankets off her legs. Standing up, she tiptoed over to Baron's house and peeked through the window. It was still dark inside. Noticing the top of the pole was still vacant, she sighed and sat back on her haunches. "So Baron and Toto are still gone," she whispered.

Glancing down, she saw that Muta was still sound asleep, snoring away. She then looked back longingly at the house. Having only eaten doll-sized food in the past few hours, it her stomach was angrily protesting. "I wonder if Baron has any food left," she thought out loud. "Maybe Muta missed something."

As quietly as she could, she pulled open Baron's doors and crept inside. She found a light switch on the side of the wall and flipped it up. The room was suddenly bathed in a sunny glow, making her feel infinitely better, and she crawled over to the cabinets.

Unfortunately Muta had cleaned out every single one, and there was nothing left but empty jars and dirty dishes.

Defeated, she turned off the light and crawled back outside. "Oh, I'm so hungry," she whimpered, her stomach groaning again.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of light. Kokoro looked up, expecting to see Baron and Toto appearing out of another hole, but all she saw were more and more flashes.

"Baron? Toto?" she called, shielding her eyes. "Muta, wake up! Muta!"

She began to panic when she realized her feet weren't touching the ground anymore, and that she was slowly being lifted higher and higher up into the air. "Muta, what's happening? Muta, wake up!" But Muta just twitched his ear and turned over in his sleep.

Kokoro started to get angry. Something was taking her away, and the cat that was supposed to be protecting her was still sound asleep! "_Wake up, you big fatso!_"

Muta jumped off the chair and started blindly swinging his paws. "Who're you callin' fatso?!" he shouted, spinning around.

"Muta, help me!" she screamed. She was almost as high as the pole.

"Oh no!" he shouted. He jumped and extended his paw, and she reached down to grab it, but she was already too high up. "Hold on!" The cat then tried to climb the pole, but he was too heavy to reach the top. "What's happenin'?"

"How should I know? Help me Muta!" she shrieked.

Kokoro finally got a good look at whatever was lifting her up. It looked like… the little people again?!

One of them began talking to her. "Our queen won't be very happy when she sees you," said a fairy woman with daffodil-yellow hair. "But, we had to take drastic action."

"Let me down!" Kokoro cried. "Please!"

The fairy ignored her. "It took us a long time to find you," she continued. "And with that dumb cat here, we couldn't come in. Now that he's gone, all the magic keeping us out went with him. We may not be able to approach you when he's around, but as soon as he leaves, you're vulnerable."

Something clicked in Kokoro's head. "You mean… Baron was protecting me? Just by being here?"

"Is that his name? Yeah, I guess so. But he's gone now, and your fat friend certainly isn't going to catch us!"

Kokoro looked down. She could see Muta was running after her, but the fairies were carrying her away much faster.

"Muta!" she screamed. "Find Baron! It's his magic that protects me!"

"Huh? But Baron's not magical! He's just a nosy cat doll!" Muta shouted back.

Her face paled. "He's not… Then, how…?" Suddenly, Muta disappeared from view as the fairies carried her out of the refuge.

Toto and Baron were in another reality. Muta couldn't keep up. Now, Kokoro was all alone. As the fact dawned on her, she began to cry. "Who's going to save me now?"

~*~


	7. The Fairy Kingdom

Kokoro was sobbing. She was being taken away against her will to most likely be punished for something she wasn't sure she'd done, and all the people that had promised to save her were nowhere to be found.

"Oh, come on, it's not that bad!" the yellow-haired fairy said, planting her tiny hands on her narrow waist. "Jeez, it's not like we're going to _kill_ you or anything."

That didn't comfort her at all. "I-I-I just wanna go home," she stammered.

The fairy sighed irritably. "Well, if you'd just give us back the stone, then we can take you home. But _you_ had to go and make everything _difficult_."

Kokoro clutched her skirt. Baron had told her to keep the stone with her at all times. That included not giving it to the fairies, at least not until he said it was okay. She shook her head.

The fairy sighed again. "Man, you humans make our lives so complicated," she said, knitting her delicate golden eyebrows together.

The fairy suddenly looked up as one of the other fairies spoke to her in a foreign language. She then glanced at Kokoro before looking forward again. "We're almost there. But be warned, you won't like it."

Kokoro suddenly felt like her body was on fire, and she squeezed her eyes shut, trying hard not to scream.

When she did open her eyes, she shrieked. Why had everything gotten bigger? And why were there now five fairies holding her, instead of a hundred? And then Kokoro saw why. _She had shrank!_

Just by looking at her body, you couldn't tell anything was different. But when she looked around and thought she saw a huge green airplane, when it was really just a leaf fluttering past, she knew something was wrong.

The fairies carried their captive through a dense forest, their glowing forms casting strange shadows on the trees.

"We're here," the fairy said. She looked down at Kokoro. "I see you've changed size. Well, you fit in a little better that way." She spoke to the fairies carrying her in their strange tongue, and they stopped.

The fairy flew forward and landed on a tree branch in front of a very large tree. More foreign words flowed off her tongue, and a rectangular piece of bark popped out, revealing emptiness. From above, lights glowed faintly inside the hollow tree.

With the other fairy's command, the fairies holding her carried Kokoro through the door and up into the tree. She had expected the inside of the tree to be dark, but it was relatively bright inside. They passed numerous fairies flying throughout the tree and into other holes.

Finally they brought her to what she presumed was the top. The fairy knocked on the big double doors, and a call came from within. The doors flew open, and the fairies carried her inside and dropped her on the floor before exiting the room and slamming the doors shut.

The room was not decorated excessively, for what she suspected was an important room. The wooden floor she was dumped on was polished to a shine, so she could see every tiny bead of sweat drizzling down her forehead and cheekbones. She could also see, from its reflection, a beautiful crystal chandelier hanging above her, illuminating the room. In front of her, sitting in front of a large hole that let in moonlight from outside, were two wooden thrones. They were intricately carved with ornate, flowery designs, and draped with flowering vines. She noticed that all the blossoms on the vines were deep red.

"Well well well, so this is the silly little human that's causing so much trouble," a voice said from above her. Kokoro shook out her hair and looked up to see a woman stretched languidly over one of the wooden thrones.

She was wearing a scarlet dress with a shimmering gold cape that spilled over the arms of the chair and onto the floor. Her brown, waist-length hair fell down her back, several fat chunks thrown over her shoulders. Thick stripes of red were streaked throughout her dark brown tresses, curled into thick red ringlets. She had glittering scarlet eyes, and her full red lips were turned up in a smirk. On top of her head rested a hoop made of shining, golden leaves. Behind her, a set of sparkling, pale red wings that resembled a butterfly's lazily waved, somewhat like a cat's tail.

She kicked one of her legs up and swung her body over so she was seated properly in her throne. Her smile widened as her eyes narrowed, and she waved the fairy that had spoken to her away. "Come forward, human," she said. "I want to get a better look at you."

At that moment Kokoro was too scared to protest, or act offended at being called 'human.' She cautiously stood up, gripping her skirt, and tiptoed forward.

The elegant fairy leaned forward and took Kokoro's chin in her hands. She then turned her head at awkward angles, scrutinizing her features.

When the woman was satisfied, she dropped her hand and leaned back. "Well, at least you're not _too_ ugly," she said, raising a delicate brown eyebrow.

She suddenly snapped her fingers and a kettle and teacup appeared in front of her. She poured herself some tea. "Well, I'm sure you, being a dumb human and all, don't know that I am the Fairy Queen, Queen Esmeralda," she said, taking a sip of her tea. "Do you have a name, or do you expect me to keep calling you 'human'?"

The sudden command startled Kokoro, but she nodded. "I-It's Kokoro, Your Highness."

"Kokoro… That means 'heart', right?" She nodded. Queen Esmeralda's eyebrow rose higher. "Looking at you, that's the thing I say you have the absolute least of."

_Hmmm. I believe that name suits you to a T._

Kokoro's jaw dropped. _Why would Baron tell me that if it wasn't true? _she wondered sadly.

"So, kid," Kokoro looked up as Queen Esmeralda placed her chin in her hand and looked at her with her burgundy eyes, "you gonna give my stone back or what?"

Kokoro clutched her skirt tighter, remembering what Baron had told her. She vigorously shook her head.

The queen's eyes narrowed. "So, let me get this straight: I have people _forcibly_ take you to my castle, and I could easily turn you into a teakettle or a mouse or something, and you _still_ refuse to give me back what's rightfully mine?" Kokoro nodded. "What gives you the courage to openly defy a powerful fairy like me?"

"Baron Humbert von Gikkingen," Kokoro stated bluntly. Frankly, she was becoming tired of the queen's arrogance. "He told me to keep it with me at all times. Besides, how do you know I have it anyway?"

The Fairy Queen smiled. "Of course!" she exclaimed. "How could I _possibly_ ask you to disobey explicit orders given to you by that… that… _cat_?" Her perfect eyebrows twitched, but she continued smiling. "I'm _so_ sorry for my rudeness. As an apology, won't you have a cup of my delicious tea?" She snapped her fingers again, and a steaming teacup materialized in front of Kokoro. "It's rosehip," she said, taking another sip of her own tea. "I absolutely _insist_!"

Kokoro carefully took the teacup in her shaking hands and stared into the swirling liquid. It _did_ smell good. She lifted the cup to her lips and took a careful sip.

She had been afraid that the tea was poisoned, or that once she drank it she would turn into something horrible, but nothing happened. And it _had_ been good. Not quite as yummy as Baron's special tea, but still good.

Queen Esmeralda smiled as Kokoro finished off her cup. She then burst into laughter.

Kokoro looked at her, a confused expression on her face. "What?" she asked, using her wrist to wipe off the tea sticking to her upper lip.

The Fairy Queen continued laughing. "You humans are so gullible!" she giggled, covering her mouth with a gold-gloved hand. "I can't believe you fell for the oldest trick in the book so _easily_!"

"W-W-What did I do?" Kokoro asked nervously, her hands quivering in anxiety.

Queen Esmeralda wiped her eyes and caught her breath. "When a fairy invites a human into their home, and offers them a cup of homemade tea, and the human drinks the tea, the human becomes indebted to their fairy host, and automatically engaged to their host's oldest child of the opposite gender," she explained gleefully. "I invited you into my home, offered you tea, and you drank every last drop! So now, according to custom, you are now engaged to my son, Prince Aidan! And you _fell_ for it hook, line, and sinker!" She doubled over in laughter.

Kokoro dropped the teacup. It rolled around on its side before stopping, a trickle of what was left of the tea draining out onto the wooden floor. Her entire body shook as she took in what the Fairy Queen said. The shock had worn off, and she could finally speak. "Y-Y-You mean… I'm now engaged to a fairy prince?!"

~*~


	8. Preparing for the Ball

Kokoro lay sprawled on her canopy bed, bawling her eyes out. She was still having trouble comprehending the latest situation she had gotten herself into.

After the Fairy Queen had finished laughing, she called back the yellow-haired fairy and told her to escort her to an extra chamber in the upper part of the tree. The fairy was having so much trouble lifting the crying girl off the floor that the queen, no longer amused, waved a hand at her and transported her and the fairy to the room. Now Kokoro was crying on her new bed as the fairy that had escorted her pulled numerous dresses out of an elegant wardrobe and draped them over her arms.

"How could I _possibly_ have gotten engaged to a _fairy_?" she wailed. "I don't _want_ to get married! I'm only fifteen! I just wanna go home!"

"Jeez, get over yourself!" the fairy yelled at her, throwing the dress she was holding back into the wardrobe. "Stop acting like a baby and start acting like an adult! If you don't, Queen Esmeralda will turn you into a mouse!"

"You don't understand what I'm going through," Kokoro replied, her voice muffled by her swollen throat, and the fact that her face was buried into her pillow.

The fairy sighed and sat down at the edge of the bed. "Honey, you have no idea how well I understand you."

Kokoro sat up and wiped her red eyes. "W-What do you mean?" she asked softly.

The fairy brushed her yellow hair behind her ear and sighed again. "About fifty years ago, when I was your age, I got lost in this forest. A fairy found me, and she invited me back to her home so I could warm up. I went to her house, and she offered me some tea. Once I'd drank the tea, she told me I was going to have to marry her son."

Kokoro leaned forward. "What did you do?"

The fairy shrugged. "What could I do? Besides, by then I had already been here eight hours, so I couldn't leave. So I married her pig of a son. But ten years later, he left me for some other girl. Some fairy who deals with teeth or something." She chuckled softly. "Actually, that was probably the best day of my life."

Kokoro knitted together her brow. "Wait, what do you mean you were already here for eight hours? Does it matter?"

The fairy looked surprised. "Honey, I hate to break it to you but… if you stay here for longer than eight hours, or about one night, you turn into a fairy." She gestured at her face. "You're already halfway there."

Kokoro lost all her color, and she jumped off the bed and ran to the vanity mirror. Then she screamed.

"What's happening to me?!" she cried, patting her face. Her ears had grown long and pointed and her chocolate-brown hair had changed to candy-apple red. But what frightened her most were the iridescent pink wings that had sprouted out of her back.

The woman sighed and picked up the dresses she had tossed on the bed. "Yeah, that's exactly what I thought when I grew these," she said, wiggling her yellow wings. "But it's really not that bad, turning into a fairy and all. There's the whole flying thing of course, and you can do magic."

"B-b-b-but I _liked_ being human!" Kokoro exclaimed, grabbing chunks of her bright red hair. She sank to her bed. "I _can't_ turn into a fairy," she mumbled.

The fairy sat next to her. "I'm telling you, it's not that bad. But..." her eyes became distant, "do you really have Baron von Gikkingen helping you?"

She turned to the older woman in surprise. "Why?" she asked curiously.

The woman turned away. "You're so lucky," she murmured. "There are lots of stories about him here, about how he always helps someone in need. I hoped for years he'd come rescue me and take me back home, but he never did…" She shook her head. "Never mind. You, young lady, have to get ready for the queen's ball."

"Ball?"

"Yeah. It's in celebration of your engagement to Prince Aidan," she explained. "The queen told me you have to look gorgeous, or she might change her mind and turn you into something _worse_ than a kettle or mouse."

Kokoro chewed on her bottom lip. She really didn't want to go to a ball, especially one celebrating her engagement to a man she didn't know. Who would, under these kind of circumstances? When she had asked Queen Esmeralda where her husband-to-be was, she simply replied that he was out of the city, and that he wouldn't be back until the day after tomorrow. By then, she now knew, it would be too late to become a human again.

Besides, she couldn't dance to save her life. She was horribly clumsy, couldn't dance without crushing her partner's feet and falling down at least once. She really didn't want to step on someone's feet if they had the ability to turn her into anything with a tail.

After about an hour of choosing and fitting, Kokoro finally settled on a beautiful, flower-like dress. It was a simple, strapless gown; at the top of the gown, it was the same color as her hair, and as the fabric descended to her feet, it gradually faded to a pale pink. A green bodice was fitted over the top of the gown. The apple-green bodice had billowy, off-the-shoulder sleeves that stopped before the elbow, and it had a deeper, V-shaped neckline that revealed the top of the red dress. At the waist, the bodice flared out into pointed, leaf-like pieces of fabric, and when Kokoro looked at herself in the mirror, she couldn't help comparing her dress to a tulip.

The fairy, who Kokoro had learned was named Belinda, arranged a ringlet of pink flowers on her head. Belinda then tied on a green ribbon with a teardrop-shaped ruby dangling on the end, and Kokoro slipped on a pair of standard dancing slippers in a lovely shade of green. When Belinda turned away, Kokoro grabbed the stone from her skirt pocket and tucked it into the green bodice. Just in case.

When she finally looked at herself in the mirror, Kokoro gasped. She had never seen herself look so beautiful in her entire life. Even her glittery pink wings, which waved freely in her backless dress, and vibrant red hair did nothing to contain her beauty.

She smoothed down the dress with her hands and tried to prevent her eyes from watering. As she thought of all the people she would never see again, a kind, cat-like face popped in her head.

Her eyes widened, and she blinked them a few times to confirm she wasn't dreaming. Now she could see that the handsome cat was not just in her thoughts. Actually, he was standing right outside her window.

Inside, Kokoro danced for joy. Baron had finally come to save her!

~*~


	9. A Plan

When Baron and Toto had returned from their research trip in the Cat Kingdom, Baron eager to share with Kokoro what he had learned, he found a panicking Muta. The large cat was running around in circles on the cobbled street.

"Muta?" he called down, holding the brim of his silk hat. "What are you doing down there?"

Muta looked up, his eyes wide. "Baron! The girl... she's gone!"

Baron almost fell off of Toto, but quickly regained his composure. "What happened?"

"I was sleepin' on the chair when she started yellin' at me and callin' me a fatso, and by then those fairies were carrying her away. I tried to keep up, but they left the Refuge and I lost sight of 'em."

The arm around his package tensed and the hand clutching his cane tightened, but that was the only thing that gave away Baron's suddenly foul mood. "Did you see which way they went?" he asked, looking down at his panting friend.

"East! There's a forest right outside the city there! I bet that's where they took her!"

Toto didn't need any instruction. He immediately took off in that direction, Baron clinging to his hat.

As Toto soared through the skies, Baron went over everything Lune had told him when he had asked the Cat King what he knew of fairies…

~*~

"Your Majesty, what can you tell me about fairies?"

_To say Lune was surprised was an understatement. Lune was so shocked that he almost dropped his teacup, but his wife, Queen Yuki, caught it before it shattered on the floor._

_Lune wiped his mouth as Baron took a sip of his own tea. "Why on earth would you want to know about fairies?" he asked. "I understand I am indebted to the Cat Bureau for the last time we met, but please… fairies?"_

_Baron nodded in understanding. "Yes, Muta and Toto were skeptical when I first made the statement as well, but Your Majesty, you must understand that this is urgent business. Someone is in danger."_

"_Who? Baron, what's going on?"_

_Baron sighed and set his cup down. "A young girl has come to me and asked for my assistance. It seems she found a mysterious stone in a river, and now angry fairies are chasing her and demanding she give it back."_

_Lune's paws tightened on his teacup. "Where is she?" he asked._

"_Muta is watching her. I left her at the Bureau, because it seemed that the fairies couldn't enter the Refuge and spirit her away. Before I return, I need to find out everything I can about them and the stone she found."_

"_What did the stone look like?" Yuki asked as she refilled all three of their cups. _

"_It was about this big," he held out his arms to show, "and it was a deep green, like an emerald. Inside the stone, there were little flecks of gold. I couldn't find it anywhere in any of my geology books."_

_While Baron had been explaining, Lune had stood up and strode to a bookshelf. He tugged out an ancient, leather-bound book._

_Lune began flipping through the book. "I don't know much about the fairy kingdom, or the fairy that rules them," he said, turning the dusty pages. "I _do_ know their kingdom is located in a forest east of your Refuge, and that most people can't see them. Just children and animals, mostly. I also know a fairy named Esmeralda rules them, and she has two sons."_

"_What does she look like?"_

_Lune shrugged. "I only met her once, when I was still a kitten. She and my father were good friends. I remember she had long brown hair, and red eyes. Oh, and she had red wings as well. All fairies with royalty in their blood have red wings. That's about all I can… aha! Here it is!"_

"_What dear?" Yuki asked as both she and Baron leaned forward. _

_Lune pointed at a picture in the book. "The rock Baron described, I found it. According to the book, it's a very rare mineral called Amedite. I wondered why it sounded so familiar, and now I remember why!"_

_Baron smiled. He knew asking Lune was a good idea._

_Lune continued. "Father had ordered a stone from Herathia, a kingdom much further south than this one, and it was supposed to be the jewel in my crown for when I took the throne. But the cat that was supposed to deliver it to me arrived three weeks after my coronation, said he was ambushed and the stone was stolen. He said all he could remember was that tiny people chased him." He closed the book, glancing up to meet the pairs of eyes gazing at him, one intense green and the other a much softer blue. "My guess is that those fairies stole it, then dropped it in the river, where your girl found it."_

_Baron jumped up. "That's it!" he exclaimed._

"_Your Majesties!" All three cats looked to the door and saw a small brown cat with floppy ears come in, holding a scroll. "This just arrived from the Fairy Kingdom," he said, handing the scroll to Yuki._

_Yuki broke the red wax seal and began reading the scroll. "Lune, we were just invited to a ball Queen Esmeralda is throwing. Her younger son just became engaged, and they're celebrating the engagement tonight."_

_Lune frowned. "I don't understand that woman," he grumbled. "First she ambushes one of my messengers and steals my crown jewel, and now she wants me to go and celebrate her son's engagement. I don't even _know_ her son."_

_An idea suddenly sparked in the cat figurine's head, and a wide smile spread across his face. "Mind if I make a suggestion?"_

~*~

Baron clutched the package King Lune had given him tighter to his chest. He had no doubts in his plan; what worried him was the name of the Fairy Prince's fiancée. He hoped it wasn't Kokoro. Why would the queen let her son become engaged to a human who was causing an awful amount of turmoil in her kingdom?

But Baron wasn't a fairy, so he wouldn't know.

"Baron! I see it!" Baron looked past Toto's feathers and saw what the crow was gesturing at. Ahead of them were several trees that were faintly glowing. They were riddled with knotholes, and out of every one gold light poured into the dark forest.

Baron pointed to the largest, and brightest, one. "Fly to that one," he said. "If this queen is as vain as I suspect, she must live there. With our luck, she may be holding the ball here as well."

"Right," Toto replied, swooping down and landing on a branch outside a square of light. Baron hopped down and dusted off his jacket. While he did so, he glanced into the hole and saw two fairies inside. One had daffodil-yellow hair; the other's the color of a ripe strawberry. The redhead was standing in front of a floor-length mirror while the other fairy stood behind her. He ducked down. _Must be preparing for the ball,_ he thought as he looked down at the package again.

He turned to look at Toto. "I have to go change," he whispered to the crow. "Stay here until I come back."

Toto nodded, and Baron hooked his cane over the branch and swung down to a lower one. He pulled the string and the brown paper fell away, revealing his costume for the night. He glanced back up at the square of light. _Don't worry Kokoro, _he thought determinedly, _I promise that I'll take you home._

~*~


	10. A Promise Made

Kokoro bit her tongue to keep from gasping. If Baron had come to save her, she certainly didn't want to give him away.

"Thanks Belinda, I think I can handle it from here," she said quickly, pushing the fairy toward the door.

"Huh? What? Hey!" Belinda protested.

"You've helped me so much Belinda. I just want to be alone until the ball starts, okay? Okay!" She kept shoving the fairy toward the door, blocking her view of the window. "I'm sure you've got stuff you need to do anyway, so you just go do that, okay?"

"Hey, Kokoro!" By then Kokoro had shoved her into the hall and had the door halfway closed.

"I promise I'll be good," she said, smiling innocently. "Just come get me when the ball starts, okay?"

"Now wait a sec—"Kokoro cut her off by slamming the door and sticking a chair under the handles. Then she ran to the window.

"Baron?" she whispered urgently. "Baron, are you there? Toto? It's me, Kokoro! Say something, please!"

"Kokoro?" The girl looked up and saw an enormous black crow gazing down at her. Again her eyes welled up with tears, and she reached out the window and grabbed onto Toto's feathers in her attempt to hug him.

"Oh Toto, you came for me!" she murmured, burying her face into his soft neck feathers.

Toto wrapped a wing around her and lightly patted her back. "I'm glad you're all right," he said as she cried tears of happiness into his neck.

She pulled away and looked up into the crow's soft eyes. "You have _no_ idea how glad I am to see you," she said, sniffing.

Toto leaned back and looked at her sadly. "What happened to you Kokoro?" he asked quietly.

Kokoro looked down, puzzled, but she didn't notice anything. Toto gestured at her wings, her red hair, and her pointed ears.

"Kokoro, you're a fairy!" he said, exasperated at her lack of response. At his statement, Kokoro's face turned as red as her hair as she sheepishly rubbed the back of her head.

"It's a funny story, actually..." she said nervously. "Long story short, I'm engaged to the Fairy Prince and I'm turning into a fairy. If I stay here one night, I'll be a fairy forever. So..."

Toto's eyes widened and he pointed at her. "_You're_ the fiancée?!" he cried, surprised.

She stared at him in shock. "What are you talking about?"

"The King and Queen of the Cat Kingdom received an invitation inviting them to a ball to celebrate the prince's engagement. We were hoping you weren't the fiancée."

"Wait, 'we'? Do you mean... is Baron here with you?"

Toto smiled. "Yes, he's here, and he has a plan to rescue you."

A smile slowly spread across her face. _He really came_, she thought. _He's really here to save me._

Kokoro looked back at the crow. "What's the plan?" she asked, feeling a new surge of bravery rise in her chest. "If there's something I can do, I want to help."

"Well, Baron said—" But before he could continue, there was a knock on the door. Kokoro pushed herself back inside the window and yelled, "What?"

"Kokoro, the ball's about to start!" Belinda called. "Queen Esmeralda wants you in the ballroom right now!"

Kokoro looked at Toto and then looked back at the door. "Okay, I'll be right out!" she called back, then she turned and looked at her friend. "I have to go."

Toto nodded. "Don't worry Kokoro," he said, reaching through the window to pat her shoulder. "Baron knows exactly what he's doing. We'll get you out of the mess."

The crow turned around and stretched his wings. "I better get going, and so should you," he said, flapping experimentally. He glanced back at the half-fairy and smiled. "Baron will save you," he said. "I promise."

Before she could respond, the crow took off into the night. Kokoro leaned out her window further and watched Toto disappear in the darkness.

"I'm coming in Kokoro!" Following this was a loud banging and Belinda fell into the room. She stood up, and dusted off her spotless yellow gown, trying to regain a piece of dignity. Once she was finished, she glared pointedly at the fallen chair and stomped over to the window. "What are you looking at?" she demanded, poking Kokoro on the shoulder.

Kokoro turned around and looked at Belinda in surprise. Belinda stared in wonder at her before asking, "Girly, why's your face so red?"

~*~


	11. My Savior Arrives

At her table, Kokoro swirled the ice cubes in her glass before sipping the beverage through a straw. Several male fairies had asked her to dance already, but she really wasn't in the mood. Besides, she was starving, and if she danced she feared she would faint. Not eating all day can do that to a person.

Kokoro was suddenly jolted out of her thoughts when somebody in front of her said, "Excuse me?" She turned to face the person, and she almost got a mouthful of rose petals.

In front of her was a very tall man. He was wearing a slate-gray cape, but Kokoro could see a lot of green underneath. On his hands were white gloves, and on his head was a green hat with a white feather sticking out of the brim. A white mask covered the upper part of his face, but she could see jade-green eyes staring down at her. Furry orange ears stuck up on either side of the brim of the hat, and he had whiskers coming out of his cheeks. In one gloved hand, he was holding a white rose.

The cat-man grinned at her and wrapped the hand holding the rose behind his back. "I apologize for my enthusiasm," he said, bowing his head. "Are you, by any chance, Miss Kokoro?"

She nodded vigorously as her heart began to race.

The cat-man's grin widened. "Would you care to dance?" He extended his free hand.

Kokoro shook her head. "Oh no, I'm really not in the mood…"

"Please," he said, "just trust me."

Kokoro chewed her lip a moment before carefully sliding her palm into his and letting him guide her out of her seat and around the table. At the end of the table, he brought forward the rose and gently tucked it behind her ear.

The cat-man led her out onto the dance floor, where the musicians were playing a romantic tune. He gently set her hand on his shoulder before placing his on her waist, gripping her hand firmly in his other. Sending her a reassuring smile, he guided her into a smooth waltz.

"I'm sorry I'm not very good," she murmured, glancing down as she removed her slipper from his foot for the third time.

She heard him chuckle. "No one ever said you weren't good," he replied. She glanced up and saw he was grinning at her.

Her face was matching her hair again and her heart was pounding so loud in her ears she could hardly hear the music. She heard him say something, but it didn't register. "What?" she asked.

He grinned at her, like one would when speaking to a child. "I said, 'Kokoro' is a very lovely name and I think it suits you to a T."

Kokoro's heart practically stopped and her face blanched. Only one person had ever told her that, a person with furry orange ears and whiskers on his face. She couldn't believe she hadn't realized it sooner. Leaning closer, she whispered, "Baron?"

The cat looked down at her, still grinning.

The song ended, and everyone applauded the orchestra. The cat, whom she had decided _was_ Baron, clapped along as well. She was too busy gawking at him to be paying attention. Eventually she had to be escorted back to her seat by one of the servers.

Of course, being the future princess, she was seated next to Queen Esmeralda. On her other side Baron sat down. Queen Esmeralda waved it off as, since the Cat King and Queen couldn't come, the Cat Kingdom's ambassador would be sitting in the king's place.

_Ambassador? _Kokoro thought, gazing at him as she wrinkled her brow. _I didn't know he was an ambassador._

"Once again, I'm terribly sorry that the King and Queen couldn't make it," Baron said, leaning forward as he spoke to Queen Esmeralda. "King Lune just couldn't bear to leave Queen Yuki's side, what with her having such a terrible case of the flu."

Queen Esmeralda smiled. "Oh, no no no no no no, don't give it another thought Mr. Ambassador," she replied. "There'll be other parties."

As servers brought them their dinner, Kokoro kept gaping at Baron as he easily bantered with everyone around him. She was so distracted that she didn't notice she was dripping the syrupy liquid from her food onto her hand until a wet cloth was dabbing at it.

She lifted her eyes and watched as Baron carefully wiped the syrup off her hand. He raised his head and murmured, "You should be more careful, Miss Kokoro. I wouldn't want you to ruin that very pretty dress of yours."

She had to look at away, her red hair hiding her scarlet cheeks. _I really should stop embarrassing myself in front of him_, she thought, sighing as he pulled away from her.

Kokoro had become lost in her thoughts again when she heard a crash, and all eyes turned to look at Baron. He was staring at the floor in front of him, and everyone followed his eyes.

Tea oozed onto the wooden floor and soaked the edge of the tablecloth, surrounding the broken crystal. Two waiters hurried over, mopped up the tea and picked up the glass, but it was obvious that the tension in the room had skyrocketed.

Baron coughed while the waiters cleaned up his mess, and Kokoro saw him wink at her out of the corner of his eye. Confused, she turned back to her food.

Noticing her fork was missing, Kokoro ducked under the tablecloth to search for it and almost collided with Baron's furry head.

He held a finger to her lips and whispered, "Five minutes from now, something not on the menu will appear on your plate. When it does, I want you to scream as loud as you can." He handed her the fork. "Trust me."

Baron helped her to her feet and she gracelessly plopped back into her chair, blushing for at least the thirtieth time that night. Why did Baron always have to be so... gentlemanly?

The minutes ticked by. Kokoro barely tasted her leafy salad as she wondered what on earth Baron could have been talking about.

The waiters took away her plate and replaced it with a bowl of green soup. _Why is all the food here green? _she thought, frowning as she absently stirred the steaming broth.

There was a splash, and she looked down into her soup and spied a hair floating in it. "Gross," she mumbled, delicately pinching it between her thumb and forefinger. She pulled it out and her eyes bugged out of her head. Wriggling in between her fingers, stained a sickly green, was a little gray mouse.

Of course, a normal person's first reaction would be to scream their head off and hurl the mouse across the room, but Kokoro just stared at it, her jaw gaping open.

It then hit her that this must've been what Baron was talking about, so she took a deep breath and screamed before gently tossing the mouse to the floor. Kokoro was certainly not a fan of _any_ rodents, but that didn't mean she wanted to kill it.

Once again, everyone turned and stared in the direction of the sound. In mere seconds, the entire room had erupted into chaos, the women jumping on the tables and shrieking and the men either protecting the women or trying to catch the mouse.

Kokoro was jerked out of her seat onto the floor, where she was once again face-to-face with the cat figurine. He grinned, pressed a finger to his lips, and motioned for her to follow him.

It was easy to crawl underneath the covered tables with everyone in a panic; no one noticed the two esteemed guests were nowhere to be seen.

Baron slid out from underneath the table and held out his hand for her to take. He helped her up, and then gestured for her to jump out the window. She looked outside and gulped, realizing how high they were from the ground, and her legs started shaking beneath her.

When she was seven years old, Kokoro had climbed a very, very tall tree to retrieve her red paper kite. However, the moment she looked down, her body froze and she started crying. Her dad had had to call the fire department, and they sent a firefighter up to get her down. She had been terrified of heights since then.

She felt her body lifted in the air, and she looked up to see Baron holding her to his chest as he climbed out the window, another blush creeping onto her cheeks. He carefully set her down on the branch and strolled into the darkness. Kokoro was afraid he was going to walk off the branch when he stopped in front of a black blob.

"Kokoro!" he called softly, waving her over. The girl nervously crept over and took the cat's outstretched hand so he could lead her the rest of the way.

"You couldn't have forgotten me already," she heard a hurt voice say, and she gasped.

"Toto!" she exclaimed, embarrassed and apologetic that she had not recognized the blob sooner.

Toto handed Baron a white package, and Kokoro craned her neck to see what it was. Her question was soon answered when Baron turned to her and said, "I have to go change. I'll only be a minute." He patted her arm and swung down to a lower branch, Kokoro biting her lip and trying to stop the heat that was flooding to her cheeks.

_Oh, why'd he have to tell me that he was going to go change? _she thought, thankful for the darkness that concealed her blush.

"Kokoro!" Both Kokoro and Toto turned toward the call and saw Belinda leaning out the window, clutching something to her chest.

Kokoro trotted over to the window and leaned in. "Queen Esmeralda knows you're gone, and she's already sent out guards to search for you," the fairy hissed, glancing over her shoulder. Kokoro's eyes widened, but Belinda continued. "Here are your clothes," she added, handing over the bundle.

Kokoro held up the apple. "What's this for?" she asked.

Belinda grinned. "I could your hear stomach growling across the room," she replied. Her smile faded as cries rang out from the room.

Before Kokoro could retort, or turn any redder, Baron climbed back onto the branch and dusted off his jacket. "Well, shall we get going?" he asked, looking at Kokoro.

Kokoro reached out and grabbed Belinda's hand. "What'll happen to you?" she asked anxiously.

Belinda smiled again. "Don't worry about me," she said, patting her hand reassuringly. "I've been fine for fifty years, I'll be fine for fifty more. You, on the other hand, won't be so you better get going before the angry queen has your head."

Kokoro nodded, then she let Baron lead her over to the awaiting crow. He placed his gloved hands on her waist and lifted her onto Toto's back before mounting the bird himself. He took Kokoro's bundle from her, but she insisted on keeping the apple. "For when I scream," she said, sticking the red fruit into her mouth.

Baron reached forward and he patted Toto on his neck. "Okay Toto, let's go!" he said.

"With pleasure!" The bird stretched out his wings and flapped them a little before he took off down the branch.

As he did so, Kokoro felt warm hands wrap around her wrists and gently pull them forward so they were clasped tightly around Baron's waist. Biting into the apple as hard as she could, she tightened her hands around Baron's waist as Toto's feet left the branch and they were gliding through the night air her knuckles turning white.

Finally, she worked up the courage to open her eyes. Leaning over a little, she caught a glimpse of the forest floor between Toto's feathers. It actually wasn't as scary as she'd thought it would be, but it certainly helped that she had her arms wrapped very tightly around Baron's waist.

"Uh-oh," she heard Baron say. "We've got company."

Peeling her face away, Kokoro turned her head and understood what he meant. They were being followed by at least twenty fairies. And they were all carrying swords.

Spitting the apple out of her mouth she faced forward again, pressing her cheek into Baron's back. "Baron?" she yelled.

"Yes?"

Kokoro squeezed her eyes shut and increased her grip on Baron's waist. "Um... I think... we're in trouble."

~*~


	12. A Daring Escape

"Kokoro?"

Kokoro peeled her cheek off Baron's back and straightened a little. "Yes?" she squeaked.

"I'm having trouble breathing."

Her hands immediately fell away and her face became flushed. "I'm sorry!" she cried.

He inhaled deeply. "It's all right, but... we're going to have to switch places."

"What?" she shouted, leaning back and staring at his backside. "How do you propose we do that?"

"I have good balance." He tilted his head back and grinned somewhat wickedly. "I am a cat after all."

Kokoro shook her head. "That doesn't answer my question Baron!"

He ignored her as he stood up and carefully sidestepped her body. He seated himself behind her and lightly placed a hand on her waist, his fingers wrapped around his cane while the other clutched the brim of his hat.

Kokoro was about to protest more when she realized that the fairies were fast approaching. She wrapped her fingers in Toto's feathers and was silent while Baron glanced behind them periodically, keeping the fairies at bay with his cane and Toto's excellent flying skills.

No one was paying attention to the trees ahead. Baron and Toto were busy trying to keep the guard fairies back. Kokoro was busy trying to keep from screaming out of sheer terror.

Kokoro saw a sparkle of red heading straight for them. "Toto, look out!" she cried, pointing in front of them.

"Huh?" Toto and Baron turned around just as Toto's wing clipped the fairy.

Kokoro and Toto screamed, and Baron grit his teeth. While Toto careened between the branches, trying to avoid the trees and the guard fairies, but also trying to balance himself out, Kokoro and Baron grabbed the fairy Toto had crashed.

When they pulled him on, Kokoro brushed the fairy's hair away so she see his face. The first thing she noticed was that he was very handsome; the next thing was that he resembled Queen Esmeralda in an uncanny way. He had dark brown hair with vibrant red highlights and sparkly red wings, and he was dressed in a red tunic with a burgundy shirt and breeches. But what she noticed most were his scarlet irises, which were staring up at her in a mixture of pain and confusion.

"Ugh, what happened?" he groaned, rubbing the back of his head.

Kokoro gave him a sheepish smile. "We weren't paying attention, and you crashed into my friend's wing. We're really, really sorry."

The man grimaced as he tried to sit up. "It's all right. No hard feelings. But..." His eyes drifted between their faces. "Who are you?"

"Well, I'm Kokoro, and this is Baron," she gestured at the cat behind her, "and the crow is Toto. Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, well, I have a goose egg on the back of my head, but I'll make it." He smiled, then winced. "Do I know you? Or, a better question would be, _should_ I know you?"

She shook her head. "I don't think so. We're not exactly popular in the Fairy Kingdom."

The fairy shook his head. "No, are you sure? I thought I knew all, or at least _most_, of the fairies in my kingdom."

Kokoro's jaw dropped. "Y-Y-Your kingdom?" she stammered.

He shrugged. "Well, not quite. But it will be as soon as my mother relinquishes her crown to me."

Baron unexpectedly joined in the conversation. "What did you say your name was?" he asked suddenly.

The fairy looked surprised, but he answered, "Prince Aidan, son of Queen Esmeralda of the—"

Both Kokoro and Baron's eyes widened and Kokoro lifted a shaking finger. "Y-You mean… _you're_ my fiancé?"

Prince Aidan's eyebrows disappeared beneath his bangs and his scarlet eyes stared at her in shock. "Fiancé? I don't even _know_ you!" He looked between the two of them. "What is going on here?"

While Kokoro was still reeling from the shock of meeting her husband-to-be, Baron quickly explained the situation to the also-shocked Fairy Prince. "Long story short, your mother kidnapped Miss Kokoro because she found a stone that doesn't belong to her, and now she is engaged to you," he said.

Prince Aidan nodded in understanding before he stood up. Kokoro started to ask what he was doing, but he strolled right past her and paused on Toto's tail feathers. He held up his hand, palm outward, and shouted, "By the order of the Fairy Prince, I command you to _stop_!"

Almost instantly, the guards halted and hovered in the air. Prince Aidan turned around and walked back, a proud smile plastered on his face. He knelt down beside Kokoro and said, "Do you mind if we land? We can further discuss your problem there."

She nodded, her cheeks flushed. "Wow, you're cool," she mumbled as Toto carefully landed on a tree branch. Baron and Prince Aidan both climbed off and offered their hands to Kokoro. As Kokoro continuing asking if Prince Aidan was _sure_ he was all right, Baron straightened his hat and glanced behind them.

"Not to be a wet blanket," he said, "but now may not be the time to be getting too comfortable."

Everyone turned to look back the way they had come. Flying toward them was another group of fairies, but this time none of them were armed.

But what made Kokoro's heart pound and all the color drain out of her cheeks was the fact that they were being lead by a woman with long brown hair and glittering red wings. And she did not look pleased.

~*~


	13. Change of Heart

Queen Esmeralda landed on the tree branch in front of the odd foursome, a scowl etched into her pretty features.

Kokoro had sat down in front of Baron's feet, twisting a lock of red hair around her fingers. When she had asked Baron what they should do, he said there wasn't much they _could_ do, and suggested she sit down because her legs were shaking.

When Queen Esmeralda's scarlet eyes fell upon her son, the scowl melted off her mouth and was swiftly replaced with a glowing smile. "Aidan, sweetie, you're back!" she gushed, rushing forward and embracing her son. However, Prince Aidan remained stiff in her arms.

"Sweetie, I didn't expect you back until the day after tomorrow," Queen Esmeralda continued, leaning back and gazing into her son's face.

Prince Aidan's expression still hadn't changed. "I finished the negotiations early but... Mother, would you care to explain how I am suddenly _engaged_?"

Queen Esmeralda glanced behind Prince Aidan and glared at Kokoro and Baron. Kokoro, anxiously chewing her lower lip, looked up at Baron and watched as he shrugged. The action only infuriated the Fairy Queen more until Prince Aidan spoke again.

"Mother, this young woman is claiming to be, not only a _human_, but also my future _bride_," Prince Aidan continued irately. "And _I_ would like to know what you have been doing since I left. Has the kingdom fallen into ruin in the three days I was gone?"

Kokoro happily noted that Queen Esmeralda looked taken aback at her son's accusations, and, chancing another glance at Baron, saw the cat doll did as well.

Queen Esmeralda stepped back from Prince Aidan and her eyes shifted between her son and the trio grouped behind him. Kokoro, out of nervous habit, grabbed a fistful of Baron's pant leg as Queen Esmeralda smoothed imaginary wrinkles from her dress.

"Well... this annoying little human stole my stone, and she wouldn't give it back, so I had to bring her here, and then she tricked me into letting her become your fiancée, and then her little friends came and crashed my celebratory ball!" she blurted quickly, glaring behind the Fairy Prince.

Kokoro's grip tightened on Baron's pant leg and a scowl of her own spread across her face. As anger gradually filled her, she awkwardly clambered to her feet, using Baron's cane for support. "That's all a lie!" she said, pointing at the Fairy Queen. "None of that's true!" She turned to Prince Aidan. "Your Highness, you've got to believe me!"

"Kokoro." She turned around and saw Baron staring at her, amusement clear in his eyes. "Tell them the truth."

A surge of confidence welled inside her, mixing with her rage as she turned back to face the handsome prince and the queen that was ruining her life. "All I did was find a pretty rock in a river. I turn around, and suddenly I'm being chased by all these angry fairies! So I went to Baron for help, and then I'm _kidnapped_, tricked into being _your _new wife, and then I'm turnedinto a _fairy_! And then Baron and Toto came to rescue me, and we were being chased by _more_ fairies, and then we met you, and—"

"Wait." Kokoro stopped ranting and looked to the prince, who was shaking his head. When he opened his eyes, he turned them to scowl in his mother's direction. "Was this rock by any chance the color of an emerald and had flecks of gold in it?"

Kokoro straightened, but her angry expression did not change. "Yeah, it was," she answered.

Prince Aidan brought a hand to his forehead and groaned. "Mother, you _knew_ that that stone was going to Prince Lune of the Cat Kingdom! Did you try to steal it from their messengers?"

Queen Esmeralda looked aghast at her son's accusations, then indignantly folded her arms across her chest. "Well, _I_ deserve it more than some cat," she grumbled, not meeting Prince Aidan's eyes.

Her comment sparked Kokoro's anger again. "So the rock doesn't even _belong_ to you?" she asked, her voice rising. "You mean I went through all _this_—" she grabbed handfuls of red and green fabric, "because _you_ were trying to take something that doesn't even _belong_ to you?"

"Well, King Lune doesn't deserve it!" Queen Esmeralda snapped back. "He deserves it about as much as his father did his!"

Kokoro stomped over to the Fairy Queen and jabbed a finger in her face. "I don't know much about the Cat Kingdom, and I know even less about its rulers, but I'm sure that _some cat _deserves it more than a snotty queen like _you_!"

As Kokoro told the queen exactly what she thought of her, Baron and Toto shared a secret smile, and it wasn't because they felt exactly the same way.

When Kokoro finished, she paused to take a breath and ran a hand through her hair. Strands of hair caught in her fingers, and when she brought them forward, her breath caught in her throat.

Her hair had darkened from the candy-apple red to a maroon color. Her hands flew up to her ears, feeling the outer shells, and she was surprised to find they were small and rounded, instead of long and pointed. She was changing back!

She turned around and gaped at Baron, clutching chunks of hair in her quivering hands. Baron smiled. "When you yelled at Queen Esmeralda, you gained confidence in your abilities and in yourself," he explained, delight twinkling in his jade orbs. "Your belief is what is changing you back."

"Well, isn't _that_ just peachy?" a contemptuous voice said, and Kokoro turned back to Queen Esmeralda. The corners of her pretty red lips were turning up in a smirk. "But it doesn't really matter, does it? _You're_ still engaged to my son, and there's _nothing _you can do about it."

Kokoro's heart sank. She knew the queen was right.

Prince Aidan sighed again. "Speaking of our engagement, Mother, there's something I've been meaning to speak to you about," he said, casting a nervous glance at Kokoro. "Kokoro, please don't take any offense to this, but... I don't wish to become your husband."

Kokoro smiled. "No hard feelings, right?" she replied.

He grinned. "Thank you," he said, his voice soft. He then turned, strode past his startled mother, and stopped in front of a daffodil-haired fairy. He took one of her hands and sank to one knee. "Belinda..." he began, gazing up into the maid's golden eyes. "I would be _honored_ if you would agree to be my wife."

The fairy's eyes welled up with tears. "Oh, Your Highness, I..." she started, obviously choked up at the sudden proposal.

"I've been in love with you since the moment I met you," he continued. "I promise, if you marry me, I will be a much more faithful husband than my brother was to you."

Kokoro tilted her head. "Brother…?" she murmured, puzzled. Suddenly, it all clicked. "You mean, _Queen Esmeralda _is the one that tricked you into becoming a fairy?!" she cried, pointing at the stunned Fairy Queen.

Both Belinda and Prince Aidan stared at their feet. "My mother was so set on my older brother, Edwin, marrying a human girl," Prince Aidan answered sadly. "When a human girl stumbled into our kingdom by accident, she tricked the poor girl into becoming my brother's fiancée. But…" he sighed, "my brother had different ideas. He agreed to marry her, but ten years later…"

"He left me for the Tooth Fairy," Belinda finished, smiling slightly as she looked up. "Like I said, best day of my life."

Prince Aidan continued. "Mother was furious because Edwin abdicated his crown and left the kingdom, so she made Belinda renounce her crown as well and become a royal maid." He lifted his gaze to focus on the fairy once more. "Belinda, I love you more than anything in the world. I would give up my crown, my _life_, if I could spend it with you."

Belinda's eyes overflowed with tears again, but she had not stopped smiling. "I always preferred you over your older brother," she said, and Prince Aidan blushed. "I may not love you now, Your Highness, but… I think with time… I can learn to." Slipping her free hand into his, her gaze fell to their joined hands, salty tears oozing down her cheeks. "I would be… truly _honored_… if I could become your wife," she whispered.

At first Prince Aidan was stunned, but once her answer had sunk in, he swept her into a tight embrace, laughing. "I was hoping you would say that," he murmured into her yellow hair as she hugged him back.

Kokoro's eyes widened as the two fairies hugged. "If Belinda agrees to marry the prince," she said, putting the pieces together, "then that means… _I _don't have to!"

Prince Aidan pulled away and the newly engaged couple beamed at her. Kokoro squealed and grabbed Belinda in her own hug. "Oh, I'm so happy for you!" she exclaimed, careful of Belinda's fluttering yellow wings.

"Well that's all fine and dandy, but I'm _not_ going to let my youngest son marry a _maid_," a shrill voice said, and Kokoro pulled away to stare at the Fairy Queen. "Besides, that maid already has a husband. She can't marry another."

If Kokoro had been mad earlier, she was furious now. Her dark eyes, normally clear and bright, were crackling with rage as she stood up to face the smug queen. "How _dare_ you say something like that!" she snarled. "How can you stand there and tell two people, two people who _obviously_ care for each other, that they can't be together because of something that happened _fifty years ago_! You, of _all_ people, should be the most supportive of them! After all, it was _your_ oldest son that broke both of their hearts the first time he was married. And why does he get to marry another woman, especially since _he_ left _his_ wife, when he was still married? Just because you're queen doesn't mean that you have the right to order people's hearts around, son, fairy, _or_ human!"

She was shouting by the time her tirade was through, her hands and knees shaking. When she was about to fall over, a hand pressed into the small of her back, and she looked up to see Baron smiling broadly as he supported her weight. "I knew that name suited you well," the cat said, and a pink blush tinted her cheeks.

"Thanks," she replied, breathless. She tilted her head further back and caught a glimpse of the sky. Her eyes began to water as she saw it beginning to turn pastel shades of pink and yellow. "We're too late..." she murmured.

"What?" Baron asked, following her gaze. "Is something the matter?""

Kokoro slumped into Baron's arms, fat tears trickling down her cheeks. "B-Belinda told me that if I'm here for a whole night, I become a fairy f-f-forever."

Prince Aidan stared at the girl, astonished. Then he turned to his new fiancée. "Belinda, what did you tell her?" he asked.

Belinda's golden eyes widened. "That's what _I_ was told when I came here," she answered, surprised. "I thought she should know."

Prince Aidan sighed, rubbing his temples as he shut his eyes. "Mother, how many lies did you tell these poor girls?" he asked, exasperated.

Queen Esmeralda, still recovering the shock of being screamed at so rudely, turned to her son and blanched. "W-W-What are you talking about, sweetie?" she stuttered.

Prince Aidan lifted his head, his scarlet eyes aflame. "How many lies have you told these girls?!" he shouted. "Why would you tell two innocent humans that they would turn into fairies forever if they stay here?"

"W-Well, if I didn't they would leave!" she retorted.

"What do you mean?" Baron asked, helping Kokoro up from the ground, where she had fallen in her despair.

Prince Aidan gave him a strained smile. "The Fairy Kingdom is _not_ like the Cat Kingdom. When a human enters our kingdom, yes, they will change into a fairy, but it's not permanent like when a human enters the Cat Kingdom." He ran his fingers through his dark hair as he continued. "Our magic isn't powerful enough to permanently alter a human's DNA."

Kokoro withdrew her head from Baron's jacket. "You mean... I can turn back?" she asked plaintively, her eyes round.

The prince nodded. "Yes. Actually, there was an antidote created..." He reached into the bag that was slung across his chest, and pulled out a small bottle with a glowing pink liquid sloshing inside. He held it up, the pink glow highlighting the features of his handsome face. "Once a half-fairy drinks it," he explained, "they become human again within an hour."

Kokoro's eyes lit up and she began to laugh in her excitement. "I can be human again?" she giggled.

He nodded, and she threw her arms around his neck. At first the prince was surprised, but he cautiously brought his arms around her waist. Kokoro pulled her head back, beaming, and kissed him on the nose. "You really are cool," she said brightly, drawing back and turning to the yellow-haired half-fairy. "Did you hear that Belinda? We can be human again!"

Belinda smiled softly as the young girl squealed excitedly. "I can't wait to get home! The first thing I'm going to do is hug my dad and tell him how much I love him, and…" Kokoro's face faded as she noticed Belinda wasn't joining in. "What's wrong?" she asked, a hurt edge creeping into her voice. "Don't you _want_ to be human again?"

Belinda continued to smile, but her eyes were sad as she took Kokoro's hands into her own. "Kokoro, I've been a fairy for fifty years. Everyone I knew back then is either dead or too old to remember me. I would have to start completely over. Besides…" she glanced at Prince Aidan, "after I get offered to marry a prince I actually _like_, I can't just _leave_."

Kokoro's jaw quivered. "Really?" she whispered. Belinda nodded. She quickly pulled her into a hug. "I'll miss you."

Belinda embraced the girl back. "I'll miss you too. And I'm sorry about the 'dumb human' comment earlier."

Pulling away, Kokoro smiled. "No hard feelings."

"You should get going," Prince Aidan said, pressing the glowing bottle into Kokoro's hand. "You know, before my mother gets over her shock and does something we'll all regret."

Kokoro nodded, wrapping her fingers around the vial. "Thank you so much, Your Highness."

He grinned. "And thank _you_ very much. If you hadn't shown up, I might never have worked up the courage to confront my mother and propose to Belinda. Good luck on your journey back, Kokoro."

She nodded again before popping the small cork off the bottle and downing the pink liquid. It was surprisingly sweet, like liquid sugar sliding down her throat. Except for the aftertaste; it made her mouth and throat burn, and she half-expected smoke to stream out her ears. That was when she realized she had been watching far too many cartoons.

Baron slipped a hand onto her shoulder and gently guided her back to Toto. He lifted her up, then seated himself in front of her, all the while as she continued gazing down at the colorful fairies. Prince Aidan wrapped a strong arm around Belinda's waist, bringing the fairy close as they waved farewell. A small smile spread across Kokoro's mouth as she waved back, trying to hold back her tears as Toto tested his wings.

As Toto took off into the lightening sky, Kokoro snaked her arms around Baron's waist as she looked back, clutching the empty bottle in her right hand.

However, as soon as she glanced down, she squeaked and squeezed her eyes shut. She may have had a pair of wings and change of heart, but it hadn't cured her fear of heights.

"Kokoro, open your eyes!" She cracked open one of her eyelids and peeked out. They were up dizzyingly high, and she had almost shut her eyes again when she felt a soft squeeze on her hand. Baron had turned his head slightly to glance back at his female companion. "Don't be scared. I promise I won't let you fall."

His words prompted her to open her other eye, and, tightening her grip around his torso, she slowly leaned back, her hair whipping around her face. Focusing instead on the scenery around her, it took her breath away. Toto was whizzing among the tops of the trees, and in the distance she could see the golden sun rising. It really was a pretty sight. She even loosened her grip on Baron's waist a bit.

She had been completely enjoying the view, and was working up the courage to look down, when Toto flew under a tree branch. The limb was too high to hit the crow, but the same could not be said for Baron and Kokoro.

The branch hit Baron in the head, and he lost his grip on Toto's feathers. Kokoro didn't have enough time to react, so, joined by his waist, she was lifted off the bird.

And then they began to fall.

~*~


	14. Bravery Revealed

Kokoro screamed. She was falling, and they weren't slowing down.

At the moment, Baron certainly wasn't helping. Though, being unconscious from the whack on his head, she couldn't really blame him.

Clinging to his motionless body, she squeezed her eyes shut as she tried not to cry.

_Look at you!_ a voice inside her head shrieked. _You're acting like a scared little fraidy-cat, no offense to Baron. After all he did for you, after all he went through for _you_, you're just going to let him, and yourself, die? You were _so_ proud of yourself back there, when you told off that queen, but you have no reason to be. When you're most needed, you freeze up, and _that's_ why you're so helpless._

It was a wake-up call, really, the voice in her head lecturing her. And it made her angry, but it also made her feel so ashamed. How could she let Baron just die? How could she let herself, after everything Baron and Toto and Prince Aidan and Belinda had gone through for her, fall to her death?

She wanted to steel her resolve. She wanted to be braver. Being surrounded by such courageous people, how could she still be _such_ a coward?

_You're right_ she thought sadly. _You are _so_ right. I _am_ a fraidy-cat… but I don't want to be. For once in my life, I want to be able to help. Baron offered to help me without a second thought. He wore that silly green outfit for me, traveled to the Cat and Fairy Kingdoms for me, saved my life a _dozen_ times. I don't want this to be the way I pay him back._

She cringed. _I'm tired of being the damsel in distress. For _once_ in my fifteen-year-old life, I want to save someone who means so much to me. The one person who said he liked my name._

And as Kokoro was thinking these thoughts, something happened. Something miraculous, something she never thought in a million years would happen.

They slowed down.

But it wasn't just that, because as she peeked out, she saw that the world was coming to a complete halt, and, surprised, opened her eyes and looked around. Shocked, she covered her dropped jaw with her hand, making sure to keep a firm grip on Baron's waist.

Her wings were flapping. _Her wings were flapping!_

She began to laugh. It wasn't that it was funny, but she was just so relieved that they were actually going to live it made her giggle. And it only got better, because then Baron's eyelids fluttered open, and he groaned.

Gasping, Kokoro squeezed Baron even tighter. "You're alive!" she shouted, laughing harder.

"I won't be if you don't loosen your grip," he wheezed, lifting a hand to his forehead. Squeaking, Kokoro relaxed her arms, but it didn't wipe the ecstatic grin off her face.

Baron winced and turned his head slightly to gaze back at the girl around his waist. "What happened?" he asked, his voice laced with restrained pain. "I remember hitting a branch and falling, but how are we…" Moving his head further, he saw her glittering wings waving, keeping them floating in the air like a hummingbird. A slow smile spread across his mouth as he patted her hands. "Good job Kokoro," he said, and Kokoro beamed.

"There you guys are!" Looking up, the two spotted a black crow flying toward them, concern sparkling in his ebony eyes. "I was so worried when I heard Kokoro scream, and I…" His voice trailed off when he noticed they were suspended in the air, and he grinned at her. "I _knew_ I liked you!" he said, landing on a nearby branch.

Carefully, Kokoro maneuvered over to the branch and relinquished her grip on the cat figurine's waist. "How's your head?" she asked gently, cringing as she saw his forehead swelling.

Baron tried to smile, but it came out as pained grimace. "I'll be all right," he assured. "Trust me, I've had worse injuries than this."

"I still feel bad though," she said, turning away some. She looked up to meet jade eyes as Baron touched her shoulder.

"It's not your fault. Now, let's get you home, before you're missed."

Kokoro nodded as he helped her straddle Toto's back again. "Right," she agreed.

~*~


	15. Goodbye

The ride home took less time than Kokoro had expected it to, and she was almost bummed out.

Almost.

Actually, the antidote had kicked in rather quickly, and by the time they arrived, Kokoro was hanging onto Toto's feet. But she didn't mind; any extra moment she got to spend with her newfound friends was valuable.

Kokoro pointed out her street, and Toto swooped down and gently set her on the front lawn before flapping to land on the picket fence.

Once she was on the solid ground again, her legs shot up, and her body readjusted to her proper proportions, and she was back to regular size. Then she rushed over to the fence.

Baron hopped off Toto's back and handed her the little white bundle in his hands: her clothes. She accepted them, and as soon as her fingers touched the fabric, they began to expand until they too, were the proper sizes.

Turning around, she reached into the bodice of her dress and pulled out the green stone that caused her so much trouble in the past few hours. Smiling broadly, she knelt down and placed the stone in Baron's hands.

"You did very well Kokoro," Baron said. "I knew that your name fit you perfectly."

She blushed. "Thanks Baron. And thank you Toto," she said, turning her attention to the crow. "You did great. All of you, even Muta." At that, the crow snorted, but she continued. "If you hadn't rescued me, I might be in the same situation as Belinda used to be."

The cat nodded. "It was nothing really. I'm just a busybody cat doll, after all." Kokoro giggled as he grinned.

"To the former Cat King and Fairy Queen, you certainly are," Toto added, a wicked grin adorning his features. "Especially after today."

The sun crept over the hills and slowly spread to cover the city in golden rays. Dewdrops sparkled on the flowers and grass, shining on Kokoro's dark hair and adding an extra glimmer to Baron's gleaming eyes.

As she watched the sun peek over her rooftop, her eyes turned sad. "Will I ever see you guys again?" she murmured.

The two Creations shared a secret smile before Baron spoke again. "If you ever need us, you will always be able to find us again, and we will always be there to help you."

She grinned. "I have to admit Baron, I think you may have stolen my heart."

"And a worthy heart indeed. Until we meet again, Miss Kokoro." Baron swung up onto the crow's back, grasping his hat and cane in one hand while the other cradled the stone. "Remember, Kokoro, trust in others, and trust yourself." With that, Toto took off, leaving behind a gust of wind and a girl who had gained back her humanity, and perhaps a piece of herself.

Smiling to herself, she skipped around to the back of her house. A wooden trellis her father had built for her mother on one of her birthdays, before she died, stood beneath her bedroom window. Her father had already trimmed down the little yellow roses that laced themselves through the framework every year, so it was relatively safe. Believing in her father's building abilities, she scaled the trellis and lifted up her window, reminding herself to lock it next time.

Once inside, she had started toward the bathroom when movement caught her attention out of the corner of her eye, and she stopped to peer at herself in the floor-length mirror.

In truth, she rarely looked in it because she never liked the way she appeared. But now, curious, she wanted to.

Her dark eyes shone in the dim light, her brown hair windblown in an attractive manner. Her skin was pale, and the dress Queen Esmeralda had given her that she'd had no time to remove still looked good, clinging to her curve-less body in a flattering way. She had been right the first time; she _did_ look beautiful.

She headed past the mirror and into her bathroom, where she changed into pajamas and tried to devise a clever enough story her father wouldn't question.

By the time she was done, she could hear him clanging about in the kitchen. _Probably searching for the coffee pot_, she thought, smiling as she bounded down the stairs and latched herself onto her dad's back.

The tall man jumped as his daughter squeezed him, and tried to turn around. "Whoa Kokoro, can't breathe!" he wheezed, and Kokoro let go. When he turned around, he found her beaming up at him, and she threw her arms around his neck.

"Have I told you how much I love you Dad?" she asked, closing her eyes as her surprised father stood there, holding the coffee pot in one hand.

"Uh… not… recently. Kokoro?"

She pulled back. "Yeah Dad?"

"You haven't been drinking _this_ recently, have you?" He held up the pot.

Giggling, she gave her dad a playful shove. "No way, I don't like coffee. I just…" She hugged him again. "I just really missed you."

Confused by his daughter's sudden affection, he carefully unwound her arms from his waist. "Jeez, I'm sorry kiddo," he said, frowning. "I didn't know you'd miss me that much. I was only out a couple extra hours, and I thought you'd be okay with it…"

"What're you talking about Dad?" she asked, furrowing her brow.

He brought his hand up to the back of his neck and smiled sheepishly. "Well, I went out on a date last night. I tried to call, but then I remembered you'd be at your environment club thing and I didn't know when you were getting back home, and, well…" his voice trailed off nervously, "I didn't get back till about one last night, and I was so tired I just went to bed. I forgot to check on you, but I was sure you there." He suddenly laughed. "I mean, where could you been? Out with a boy or something?"

Kokoro looked away and laughed along, though she wasn't nearly as enthusiastic "Yeah… no way Dad," she replied.

_At least it saves me from having to explain where I was last night,_ she thought happily. "Oh! So how was your date Dad?"

Her dad actually blushed. "It was nice," he said. "We went to dinner and saw a movie, then we went for drinks afterward."

"What's her name?"

"Emiko."

"Emiko." She rolled the name over her tongue. It didn't sound _too_ bad. If this had been before yesterday, she probably would've resented the woman immediately, and begged her father not to see her anymore. After all, no one could ever replace her mother, and she despised anyone who tried. But it wasn't; it was after. So, with her recently opened mind, she asked, "Is she nice?"

He sighed. "Very."

"How about pretty?"

"Yes." He then placed a large hand on top of her head and ruffled her hair affectionately. "But nowhere near as pretty as you, sweetie."

Grinning broadly, she threw her arms around her father's waist again. "I love you Dad," she murmured into his T-shirt.

Embracing his daughter as well, he whispered back, "I love you too, Kokoro."

~*~


	16. New and Improved

Sorry it took me forever to post this! I had no inspiration for months, and was busy with school, but I finally was inspired again by the lovely YarningChick, whose stories I have becomed addicted to again. One more chapter, and then it's done, and I can get back to work on 'A Heart's Wish'.

* * *

"Okay, spill: what _happened_ Friday night?" Kokoro and Ami strolled out of the classroom, clutching their various books to their chests.

After her dad had gone outside to mow the grass, Kokoro called up her best friend and let her know she would explain everything on Monday, because she had a ton of homework to do and she and her dad were going to hang out, something they hadn't done since she was ten.

Being the absentminded person he was, her father had forgotten in his exhaustion to check to make sure his only daughter was in her room, let alone _alive_, yet Ami had been calling nonstop from six o'clock till eleven o'clock, desperate to find out where her friend was.

"I mean, I called you like, _fifteen_ times, and _nobody_ picked up," Ami continued, waving her cone around. "Seriously, were you like on a _date_ or something?"

Kokoro laughed. "No, I wasn't on a date," she said, turning her gaze to the shorter girl and grinning, her dark eyes twinkling with amusement. "But you wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"How do _you_ know? That's _so_ not true Kokoro and…" Her voice trailed off as she grabbed a hold of her friend's shoulder, causing her to stop.

"What, Ami? Let go…" She turned around and saw what her friend was staring at. Coming toward her with a broad smile on his face was none other than Tora Shibuki, gorgeous upperclassman. Any normal schoolgirl would've been a puddle on the floor by then, but Kokoro remained upright, her lips pressed into a thin line.

"Hey, Kokoro right?" Tora said, coming up.

"Yes, that's my name," she replied indifferently. Ami had stepped back to give her privacy, but Kokoro hadn't noticed.

"Yeah, we're in Environment Club together."

"Yes, Tora, we are." She sighed. _What did I ever see in him?_ she thought, annoyed. _He didn't even know until Friday._

"Did you hear I broke up with my girlfriend?" he asked, shoving hi hands into his pockets.

Kokoro raised her eyebrows, only slightly surprised. "No, I didn't. I'm sorry to hear that."

"Yeah, well, it just wasn't working for me. So, I was wondering if you're doing anything Friday night? Maybe we could catch a movie…"

Smiling to herself, she shook her head, cutting him off mid-sentence. "Sorry Tora, but I like someone else," she said. "But I'm sure lots of other girls would love to go out with you on Friday." She turned to walk away, but he grabbed her wrist, and she had to turn back around.

Tora looked incredibly surprised. "Are you turning _down_ a date with _me_?" he asked, astounded. "Because you like someone _else_?"

She nodded. "That's right Tora. Sorry to have to be the one to break it to you. Now, if you'll excuse me," she slid her wrist out of his hand, "I'm going to go to lunch now. See you later." Spinning around, she whispered to Ami, "Let's go," and her friend followed behind her, neither girl glancing behind to see the stunned boy standing there, arm out, mouth agape.

"I can't believe you totally said no!" Ami said once they'd reached the cafeteria. "I thought you were totally in _love_ with Tora!"

"I was," Kokoro said quietly, lifting a yellow tray off the stack. "But then I got over it."

"How can you just 'get over it'? All you _talked_ about was Tora!"

"Yeah, I know."

Ami stuck out her lower lip. "So what gives?"

A small smile appeared on Kokoro's mouth, and her eyes glinted in remembrance as she recalled the events of Friday night. "I realized that it wasn't love, just infatuation. Besides, there's more important things in life than boys."

Ami shook her head. "Where are the aliens that kidnapped my friend?" she said, shaking her head as they paid for their lunches. "I want my Kokoro back."

Kokoro laughed as they trotted over to a table and sat down. "You _do _have your Kokoro back," she replied. "Just a new and improved model." She smiled, then stood up again. "Ami, I'll be right back."

"_Now_ you're ditching me!" Ami grumbled, angrily spearing her angel food cake. "I don't think I like the new and improved model."

But Kokoro wasn't listening. She was making her away across the cafeteria toward a table in the back, where the soccer team sat. When she approached some of the boys wolf-whistled and Tora, who was on the team, smiled smugly. However, she walked right past him and over to Takashi. She tapped him on the shoulder, and he spun around.

"Hi Takashi," she said brightly.

Takashi had to swallow whatever he had in his mouth before he could grin at her. "Hey Kokoro, what's up?" he said as all the boys at the table fell silent.

Kokoro took a deep breath, nervous about what she was going to say, but she ignored the urge to tug at her hair. "I just wanted to tell you that I'm dropping out of Environment Club," she said bravely, tilting her chin just slightly. "I care about the environment and all, but I'll stick to recycling cans."

Takashi sighed, ran a hand through his thick black hair. "Can't say I'm surprised," he responded. "You never liked going, huh?"

She shrugged. "I've cleaned about all the rivers I can stand."

"Well, you suffered a semester and a half. That's longer than most."

He started to turn back around, but she said, "But... To make it up to you, would you like to see a movie with me on Friday?"

All the boys 'oohed' as Takashi flushed. Tora stood back, his smirk having faded to a scowl. "_This_ is the guy you like?" he asked accusingly, glaring at her and Takashi. "_This_ is the guy you'd rather go out with than _me_?"

"Wow." Everyone, whose attention had been focused on Tora, turned back to look at Takashi. "You said no to Tora?" She nodded. Takashi's grin broadened. "In that case, I'd love to go out with you."

Kokoro beamed. "Great!"

Takashi beckoned her to step closer, then asked for her hand. She offered it and he flipped it over, palm up. Seiji, Ami's boyfriend, handed him a pen, and he casually scrawled a set of numbers on the inside of her wrist. "There's my number," he explained, recapping the pen but not yet releasing her hand. "Give me a call and we can decide which movie to see."

"Okay," she replied breathlessly. Takashi lifted her hand, pressed a kiss to the top of it, and finally let it go. She turned to go, her cheeks stained pink, while the boys either clapped Takashi on the back or taunted the glowering Tora.

As she returned to her table, her mouth curled upwards as her friend squealed in delight. "Oh my gosh, that was awesome!" Ami said, clapping excitedly. "The look on Tora's face was absolutely _priceless_! I wish I had a camera."

"It _was_ pretty good," Kokoro agreed, sitting down again.

After more congratulations and girlish giggles were exchanged, Ami sighed happily and grabbed her sandwich. "I take it back," she said, taking a bite. "The new and improved model is _way_ cool. I like her."

Glancing over her shoulder, Kokoro smiled softly. Takashi noticed her look and sent back a brilliant smile as he ran his fingers through his raven hair, and her heart skipped a beat. "Yeah," she murmured as she waved back. "Me too."

~*~


	17. Epilogue

Snuggled beneath her warm blankets, Kokoro had been sleeping the morning away when she had suddenly awoken to a loud tapping sound outside her window. Groggily shoving her comforter away, she sat up in bed and glanced outside, and was rather surprised to see a black bird pecking at the glass.

Kokoro leapt out of bed and threw open the window, inviting the bird inside. "Toto!" she cried, grabbing the bird and hugging him to her chest, which, in the months that had gone by, had begun to fill out. "I missed you Toto."

The crow reached up and patted her on the shoulder with a large wing. "Likewise," he replied as she relinquished her grip and he fluttered over to her desk. "We all have."

"Really?" she asked excitedly, flopping onto the end of her bed. "Muta? And Baron?"

"Yep." Toto began to smooth out the feathers she had rumpled in her eagerness. "Actually, Baron sent me here. He wanted me to ask you if you'd stop by the Refuge this morning."

"Really? What for?"

The bird Creation shrugged. "He wouldn't tell me exactly, just said he had some news he felt he should share with you."

Kokoro had already made up her mind before he even finished explaining. She sprang off her bed and rushed to her closet, where she proceeded to dig through every article of clothing she owned. "Wait outside for me," she called from the depths of her closet. "I'll be down in ten minutes." The sound of flapping wings assured her the bird was gone, so she stripped off her pajamas and changed into a casual outfit. She combed her hair, brushed her teeth, and, at the last minute, plopped a black beret on her dark hair before racing down the stairs.

"I'm going out Dad!" she shouted, yanking open a cabinet and snagging a protein bar.

"Where to? And with whom?" Her father stepped into the kitchen, clutching a ceramic mug as he scratched his stubbly chin.

"The Crossroads," she answered, tucking the bar into her bag before grabbing her shoes. "I'm meeting friends there." Which wasn't a total lie. Not only was she going to see her friends from the Cat Bureau, she had already planned to meet her boyfriend, Takashi, there later that afternoon.

She leant up and kissed him on the cheek. Then, she wrinkled her nose. "Please shave today Dad. It's unbearably itchy."

"Really?" He scratched his chin again. "But Emiko kinda likes it. She says it makes me look rugged."

"Maybe if you're a construction worker, or a lumberjack," she remarked. "Right now, you kinda look like a bum."

He looked down, took in the threadbare T-shirt, the faded sweatpants, and the grungy socks with a hole in the toe, and sighed. "I kinda do, huh?"

"I'm only telling you this because I love you," she said. "She liked you before the fur, she'll like you when it's gone. See ya later!"

"Home by six!" he shouted out the screen as she tugged on one shoe, then the other.

"Okay, bye!"

Toto was perched on the freshly painted white trellis outside her bedroom window, preening. He perked up when her heard her voice, then flew off and landed on her shoulder. "Ready?" he asked.

"All set," she said. The bird nodded, then launched himself off her shoulder to hover in the pale blue sky.

Kokoro jogged along the sidewalk beneath Toto's shadow. It was so early that Sunday not many people were up yet, so there was virtually no one for her to avoid and peacefully quiet. Finally they reached the Crossroads, and Toto guided her through alleys and back streets until she was passing beneath the familiar arch and entering the Refuge.

She had only been there once before, but it was still as quaint and beautiful as ever. When she had entered, Toto cawed and Muta appeared out of nowhere and began rubbing against her legs. She laughed, knelt down, and scratched his brown ear. "I missed you too, Muta," she said, wrapping her arms around Muta's enormous girth.

"Easy on the ribs, Chicky," the large cat said, purring into her shoulder.

"Yeah, if you can even find them," Toto scoffed, and Muta scrambled out of her arms.

"Why don't you say that to my face Birdbrain?" Thus beginning another argument.

Kokoro sighed. "I even missed this. Sort of."

"Some things never change, do they?" Smiling, Kokoro rotated on the balls of her feet until she was facing the one she owed her life to, and who had summoned her that morning. "Baron," she breathed, unable to stop her cheeks from flushing.

Smiling back, Baron elegantly swept the white top hat off his head and extended his hand. "Miss Kokoro," he said as she stuck out her index finger, and they shook hands. "You look lovely."

Even though she had a boyfriend, her cheeks darkened in color at the compliment. "Thanks. So do you."

"Would you like to come inside?" Baron offered, gesturing toward his little green-and-white house. "I was just in the middle of brewing a pot of tea."

"I would love to." She smiled as she stood up and followed the cat figurine to the door. "I miss your tea."

Once inside the cozy house, Baron continuing blending the tea mixture while informing her of current news.

"King Lune received his stone without any more mishaps," he began as he dug through a drawer for a spoon. "He and his wife send their thanks. They wanted to send you a gift, but I persuaded them otherwise." He shook his head and chuckled softly. "The last time the Cat Kingdom 'thanked' a human, there was quite a bit of chaos on both sides."

"How is Queen Esmeralda?" she asked.

"Moping about in her retirement. Once Prince Aidan married Belinda, she had to relinquish her power to him."

"Are they doing okay? Belinda and Prince Aidan, I mean."

"Happily in love and running the kingdom quite smoothly, last I heard." He turned a slanted eye up to her and winked. "I also heard Queen Belinda is expecting her first child soon."

Kokoro could barely contain her joy. "Really? Oh, I'm so happy for them!"

"I also seem to have acquired a new job," he added, pouring their tea. "After my little performance at the former Queen Esmeralda's ball, King Lune decided to add the job to his list of staff."

"Really?" she asked, taking sip of her tea. It was as warm, sweet, and delicious as her first cup.

"Yes," Baron replied, sitting in a red armchair and chuckling, his jade eyes twinkling merrily. "I will actually be paid to wear that ridiculous green outfit."

Kokoro laughed, setting her cup down so as not to spill any of Baron's special blend on her coat.

"And," he began, sipping his own tea, "how have you been faring since our last meeting?"

Kokoro sighed, leant back in her chair, and smiled. "Great!" she replied happily, ticking off her fingers as she counted off how great her life had become. "First off, I dropped out of the Environment Club. Don't get me wrong, I care about the environment and all, but I only joined the club because a boy I liked did." She giggled. "Speaking of which, I got over that boy, because he never would've noticed me anyway. I'm doing phenomenal in school, and I joined the track team and plan on joining the cross county team next year. My dad is seeing this totally awesome woman, Emiko, from work. And…" She fidgeted with her sleeve as her eyes fell to her lap, trying to conceal the blush blooming on her cheeks. "I asked out this boy I know and he said yes, and we've been dating for three months now." Lifting her head and brushing the hair away from her face, she looked up to meet Baron's warm smile.

"I'm very proud of you Kokoro," he said, setting the cup down and rising from his chair. He walked forward and placed a small, gloved hand on her knee. "I never doubted you for a minute. I knew, from the moment we met, you had the talent to be good and happy. The difference now is that you know it too. "

Tears welled up in Kokoro's eyes and threatened to overflow at Baron's heartfelt words. Reaching down, she carefully picked the cat figurine up by the waist and hugged him to her chest. "Thank you," she murmured, "for believing in me."

Baron patted her shoulder. "Good job Kokoro."

After a minute or two, and her tears had subsided, Kokoro gently set Baron back on the floor and dabbed at her eyes. "So, I guess this time it really is goodbye?"

Baron nodded. "Most likely. With you doing this well, you'll probably never need our help again."

"Too bad." She smiled, then gazed out the glass balcony doors. "I think I'll miss the constant bickering."

They burst into fits of laughter, and they giggled until it was finally time for her to go. She crawled back out the double doors, stood up, stretched, and gazed around the miniature town set aside from the rest of the world. She was going to miss this place.

For once, Muta and Toto were silent as Kokoro walked over to say her goodbyes. She coddled Muta like a baby, scratched his mismatched ears and nuzzled her cheek into his soft, creamy fur. "Thanks for watching over me," she said before setting him back down on the ground.

"No problem Chicky," he grumbled, but there was a slight smile between his whiskers.

Next it was Toto's turn, and she let him perch on her shoulder as she stroked his glossy feathers. "Thanks for taking care of me."

"I enjoyed every minute," he replied, then he fluttered off her shoulder and took his place atop his stone pole.

Finally, she turned to Baron Humbert von Gikkingen; to some, a busybody cat doll. To her though, he was her heroic feline friend, and she would never forget him.

Baron smiled cordially at her and tipped his hat. She laughed and did a little curtsy in response before sighing. "I'll miss you all," she said, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. "Promise you won't forget me?"

The threesome nodded. "As long as you do the same," Toto said, grinning.

She nodded. "Deal." Glancing back toward the arch, she sighed. "I guess I better get going. Goodbye." She spun around and slowly left the Refuge.

Ducking beneath the arch, she followed the alleyway until she stepped out onto the black asphalt street. Twisting a lock of dark hair in her fingers, she fought back the urge to cry and continued walking along the street to the Crossroads.

Once she'd arrived, she bit her lip and looked around, searching for Takashi.

"Kokoro!" Recognizing the familiar timbre of the voice, she whirled around… and collided into someone else. The two tumbled to the ground, and Kokoro immediately began spluttering apologies.

"I'm so sorry!" she cried, shoving chunks of hair out of her eyes and sitting up. Noticing objects scatted across the pavement, she began reaching for them. A quilting magazine, a camera, a purple wallet, some teabags, and a yellow box of fish crackers like the ones she used to eat when she was little. She clambered to her feet, then reached down to help up the unfortunate person she had hit.

It was a young woman, maybe a couple years older than her, with cropped brown hair. She accepted Kokoro's offered hand, and Kokoro pulled her to her feet. Now she could get a better look at the girl.

She was a couple inches taller than her, wearing a yellow dress with capped sleeves and sunglasses perched on top of her short hair. Her big brown eyes sparkled in the sunlight, and she was holding a bag to her chest.

Kokoro hastily bowed and apologized again as she handed the girl back her things. The girl then carefully placed the items back in her bag, and smiled.

"I'm really, really sorry," Kokoro said for the third time.

The girl waved her hand. "No big deal, really," she said. "I'm not hurt. Are you?"

"No…" A voice cut her off, and both girls turned to see Takashi jogging toward them.

"Kokoro, are you all right?" he asked as he reached them, placing his hands on her shoulders.

"I'm fine Takashi," she said, patting her boyfriend's shaking hands. "I'm okay, I promise."

"Good." He ran a hand through his raven hair, made unruly by his mad dash down the street and through the growing crowds. "I almost went into cardiac arrest when you fell."

Kokoro smiled, then turned back to the girl. She was about to confirm she was all right to the young woman when her words stuck in her throat. Her eyes had fallen upon the young woman's bag.

There was nothing unusual about the bag, at least to most people. It was a pale blue canvas sort, simple really. Painted on the front of the bag were three animals. A glossy black crow grinned up at her from the left, a fat white cat with a brown ear glowering from the left. In the center was an orange and cream-colored cat, smiling warmly, tilting a white top hat with a gloved hand.

Her grin widened as she entwined her hand with Takashi's. "Nice bag," she said, pointing at the canvas.

The girl glanced down, a bit surprised, but she smiled and hugged it to her chest. "Thanks," she replied brightly, but the two girls shared a secret look that the still-shaking boy missed. "Well, it was nice bumping into you," she said after a moment, slinging the bag over her shoulder and walking away.

Kokoro sighed and fell into Takashi's chest. He glanced down at her, brushing a few strands of hair away from her eyes. "Did you know that girl?" he asked.

"Nope." She shook her head. "Never seen her before in my life."

"Huh." The couple gazed after the mysterious girl, but after a moment Kokoro began to tug Takashi down the street. "Hey, watch the arm!"

"C'mon, you can't be checking out other girls while I'm with you!" she said playfully. "I'm your girlfriend!"

"You know you're the only girl I'd check out," he replied, letting his girlfriend pull him to her. Once their fronts touched, he bent his head and pressed a sweet kiss to her mouth.

"Okay, you're forgiven," she said dreamily as he looped his arm around her waist, their fingers still intertwined. "Have any place in mind today?"

"Well," he tapped his chin, "I was thinking we'd grab some lunch and have a picnic in the park. You know, that one with the cherry trees? What do you think?"

Kokoro sighed happily, leaning her head against his shoulder and giving his hand a squeeze. "Sounds great."

* * *

So, the last chapter. Took me long enough, right? Not only did I have writer's block for an incredulous amount of time, I went back and edited all the previous chapters. Now I can finally work on _A Heart's Wish_, and get started on some other ideas I have most.

Many thanks to YarningChick, Lunarobi Pride, and Thundercat.


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